Fable of the Rouge Tails
by Ziek Shrownamn
Summary: A single change ripples outward in a cascade event of outcomes; Sakura leaves Tazuna's side in the Land of Wave to help Naruto and Sasuke fight Haku, "because those who abandon teammates are worse than trash," and the worse possible outcome occurs. Forced to face the horror of reality and offered a deal he couldn't refuse, Naruto takes the first steps in becoming a legend.
1. Chapter 1

Revised A/N, 5/25/16: Jesus. It's been a lot longer than I thought. For returning readers, welcome back. For new readers, welcome! This is the revised first chapter of an ongoing project of mine that will one way or another reach completion. I changed up some of the wording and grammar, made it flow a little better, and fixed a few niggling plot holes that I had noticed but never bothered to fix. I might even come back to this later on down the road and do some further editing, but we'll find out as time goes on. As it is now, just consider this the foundation for an ever-changing, evolving AU that will reach hopefully epic proportions, and - until next time - enjoy!

**Fable of the Rouge Tails**

**Chapter One**

Snowflakes alighted his burning cheeks, evaporating almost immediately from the lingering heat of the Kyuubi's chakra running through his veins. Naruto opened his eyes and tried to move, muscles screaming in protest. Blood oozed from slowly-closing wounds, the small cuts and lacerations covering his body sealing themselves as he gained his bearings. Senbon fell to the ground with a musical tinkling sound, something Naruto barely noticed over his own ragged breathing and the sound of his heart pounding in his ears.

A muscle spasm had Naruto falling back onto his side with a wince when he tried to sit up, gracelessly sprawled out on the damp surface of the bridge. The fog had long since dissipated, the ice mirrors that once surrounded him gone with their creator. A few feet in front of him, Sasuke lay face down, just barely breathing. Nearly draped over the Uchiha's form was...

The blond jinchuriki's eyes flashed red, but he was far too tired to move, barely managing a despairing, guttural sound. He quickly averted his gaze, bile rising within him at the sight of Sakura's limp form. Haku's precision with senbon was almost without peer, but in the heat of battle, where a thousand things could go wrong, it only took one to make a difference; While Sasuke had been rendered unconscious by the initial volley, Sakura's fate had been sealed the moment the senbon left the shinobi's grasp, left to the uncaring mercies of sheer chance.

Naruto saw Kakashi's approach through a haze of exhaustion and dull, radiating pain, stiffening subconsciously as he was lifted up into the man's arms. He watched a clone of Kakashi kneel to check Sasuke's pulse, then Sakura's, and Naruto found himself squeezing his eyes shut, knowing exactly what his sensei would find. As the last traces adrenaline left his body, Naruto finally succumbed to unconsciousness, finding little solace in the darkness as images of the battle flashed through him.

**Flashback – Ten Minutes Prior**

_ Naruto shouted with rage as he saw Sasuke's body collapse, senbon riddling his frame, a blur connecting one mirror to another the only indication that the ice-wielding shinobi had moved. The Uchiha's shoulders slumped and his muscle slackened, his descent to the ground almost in slow motion. A scream of denial tore past Naruto's lips at the sight of the fallen Uchiha. His heart pounded, a maroon haze obscuring his vision, indigo eyes locking onto the mirror image of Haku across from him. He was distantly aware of a feminine shout coming from his right as he rushed forward, intent upon crushing his opponent's skull with his bare hands for ending his teammate's life seemingly effortlessly.  
_

_ A little distance away, Sakura was conflicted. She was tasked with guarding Tazuna, but the battle between Naruto, Sasuke, and the hunter-nin wasn't going well. Kakashi was holding Zabuza at bay, ducking and weaving between surprisingly-fast swings of his zanbatou while whittling away at his form with razor sharp kunai. Her body was tense, nearly vibrating, fight or flight instinct going haywire. With a frustrated sound she glanced at Tazuna, locking eyes with the elderly bridge builder. "Go help out your teammates," he said, a frown upon his face, but a steely tone in his voice. "I'm an old man. I've lived my life, I've done what I've needed to do. You three still have years ahead of you."_

_ Sakura hesitated for only a moment longer before nodding her head, vanishing in a flurry of motion. Tazuna gave a weary sigh and sat down upon the bridge, listening to the dissonant sounds of battle around him. The bridge was nearly complete - they could finish it without him, if need be. Those kids had already sacrificed so much for his sake... He wouldn't ask them to abandon one another in addition to that._

_ Sakura rushed towards the ice mirrors, her mind whirling with strategies and possibilities. Memories of the textbook examples flashed through her head: what to do against daunting odds, what to do when one was surrounded... She silently drew a kunai, waiting to see any movement signifying Haku. When a blur darted from one mirror to another, she tossed a kunai through the gap, aiming just ahead of the form. There was a flash of red and a soft gasp and she grinned, leaping into the dome of mirrors. _

_ As she drew another kunai, she paused to take a look at the surroundings. Sasuke was collapsed upon the ground and Naruto looked **pissed**, eyes wide and teeth bared – more like an Inuzuka than an Uzumaki, especially with how pronounced the whiskers on his cheeks had become. The moment he caught sight of Sakura his visage softened, and worry overtook him. "Sakura-chan! What are you doing - you're supposed to be guarding Tazuna!" He said, twisting as a volley of senbon flew his way. Several sank into his flesh with a sickening sound, but he guarded his vitals and escaped with minimal further damage.  
_

_ "Those who abandon the mission are trash, but those who abandon teammates are worse than trash!" She said, throwing a trio of kunai towards Haku in retaliation. Naruto grinned, drawing out a handful of shuriken. "Let's do this, then!"_

_ Haku was concerned. Flashing from mirror to mirror, he took in the new arrival with some trepidation. She seemed harmless... Textbook fighting stance and throwing style, but particularly accurate from a flawless technique. The gash upon his leg proved that. Aside from that, she didn't seem to have much field experience; Haku could see her shaking just slightly from adrenaline. The masked hunter-nin had to finish this battle quickly, or be overwhelmed by numbers and chakra exhaustion.  
_

_ Slipping several senbon into both hands, he prepared himself to dart forward. Aiming for the same pressure points he used on Zabuza, he threw a volley towards Sakura, the freshest of the two. Her green eyes widened and she moved to backstep, but the sound of metal piercing flesh and the faintest of 'gurks' followed when several senbon struck Sakura's frame, her dodge far too slow. Sakura's body fell backward with her momentum, landing nearly in the same vicinity of Sasuke, and then grew still. Senbon protruded not from the pressure point he had aimed for, but from a spot a few inches above. Haku felt a pang of recognition for only a brief moment, before an icy mask overcame his expression. The senbon had pierced some of the major arteries in her throat... The girl was doomed, but as Zabuza's tool, he couldn't afford to linger upon her death – it was a necessary sacrifice for Zabuza's goals to be accomplished. He flashed to another mirror and took aim towards the blond haired Genin, not expecting the sight that awaited him.  
_

_ Naruto saw Sakura collapse, honed hearing picking up her shuddering death rattle as her body went limp. His eyes widened, body growing deathly still, before he began to shake with growing fury. A roar ripped its way out of his throat as ruby overtook sapphire, hellfire bleeding into eyes once full of childish innocence. His fingernails elongated into sharp claws, canines growing more pronounced. A single tail of flaming red chakra erupted from his tailbone. A cloak of youkai bathed his form as he fell to all fours, a bestial stance for a bestial transformation. Haku's eyes widened behind the porcelain mask: How had the blond gained such immense power? He had an impressive chakra reserve before, but this was beyond comprehension... It was unnatural. Then, Naruto lurched forward, and the mirror to his right completely **shattered**. It was pure luck that Haku wasn't cleaved in half by the swipe of a mighty claw. _

_ Haku never would have imagined that the innocent preteen he encountered the day prior was capable of such speed and power. That boy couldn't have harmed a fly, but as he dodged out of the way of another burning crimson claw, Haku feared for his life. Even Zabuza didn't radiate this kind of killing intent - it was monstrous._

_ Haku threw a half dozen senbon towards Naruto's lowered form, only for him to blur out of sight. A split second later, a closed fist annihilated the chakra-infused ice. Haku was only halfway out of the mirror when it shattered; As he retreated to an opposing mirror, blood ran down his left side in hot rivulets. The trail of life fluid led the instinct-driven Naruto to the mirror he was occupying and he whipped his body around, body coiling like a spring as he moved to attack once more. Haku needed to act quick._

_ The ice user darted out of the mirror, aiming for Naruto's right flank, only to be intercepted by a chakra-infused arm. The breath was knocked out of him and he felt several ribs crack. He fell to his back with a thud and scrambled to his feet, only to be shoved back to the ground by Naruto's dense frame appearing above him. Haku barely managed to bite back a scream of pain as the chakra surrounding Naruto burned his flesh upon contact, the hand pressed to his chest burning through fabric with ease. A fist crashed into his porcelain mask, shattering it to pieces – revealing his feminine, familiar features to the demon-posessed Naruto._

_ He only hesitated for a split second, the indigo of his eyes turning to a distinct clash of red and blue, before another fist like the hammer of Kami fell upon Haku's face. His nose shattered, cartilage digging deep into his tissue; His jaw dislocated, rent to the side, head whipping with the force behind the blow. Haku's vision went blurry, fading in and out of consciousness for a moment. Naruto continued with his assault regardless, the tears leaking from his eyes sizzling away the moment they were exposed to the heated air around him. _

"_**You!"**_

_Thud._

"_**Killed!"**_

_Thud._

"_**Them!"**_

_**Crack.**_

_ The concrete of the bridge below Haku's still frame shattered. The male's head was caved inward from the multitude of blows, skull fragments scattered in every direction, gray matter soaked in blood and pooled within the crater below whatever was left of the shinobi's skull. Naruto reared his bloody fist back once more, eyes narrowed into slits, blinded by fury and sadness and raw blood lust..._

"_Naruto!"_

_ The sound of his sensei's voice snapped him out of his berserker's rage. The demonic chakra surrounding him began to fade away and the reality of what he had done began to sink in. Red eyes turned blue, and then widened with horror. He scrambled away from the desecrated corpse before him, tripping and stumbling over himself as he tried his best to look away from Haku's frame. _

_ He stopped when his back collided with Kakashi's legs, feeling a hand fall upon his shoulder. Kakashi squeezed down reassuringly and crouched next to him, sporting a few injuries of his own, but nothing the seasoned Jonin couldn't handle. Naruto promptly doubled over, emptying what little was in his stomach onto the concrete. He dry heaved for a minute - then another as he caught sight of his bloodied hands - as Kakashi rubbed his back, even his hardened features softening._

"_Naruto, it's over. Zabuza's dead, and Gato's in chains."_

_ Naruto barely moved in response, staring straight ahead to avoid looking at his blood-soaked hands or the sight of his fallen teammates, but Kakashi caught his head tilting towards him just slightly before he spoke. "Gato? H-How...?"_

_ "You inspired Inari to rally the villagers and stand up against him. With a little assistance from yours truly, him and his mercenaries were nothing."_

_ Naruto's shoulders sagged, relief and weariness settling in. His eyes widened, however, gaze snapping over to where Sasuke and Sakura had fallen – nearly draped across each other._

_ "What about Sasuke and Sakura-chan?!" He asked, moving to stand, only for pain to shoot through his body. He gasped and fell back to the ground, landing unceremoniously upon his backside. Kakashi winced, even his cool facade slipping for a moment as he thought of how to break the news to the impressionable young boy. _

_ "Sasuke's fine, Naruto. Just put in a state like Zabuza was. But..." Naruto's form slumped against him, exhaustion finally settling into him before Kakashi could finish. It was no surprise, really. The physical toil of using the Kyuubi's chakra, combined with the mental exhaustion of what Naruto just witnessed... It was a surprise he had managed to speak a few sentences before collapsing._

_ Still, Kakashi would have to break the news to him one way or another. It was only through years of ANBU service that allowed him to keep his cool facade, given the situation. He had seen Sakura abandon Tazuna when she heard Naruto call out for Sasuke, and he couldn't blame her for that. Remembering his own speech to them about abandoning teammates, it was exactly how he had trained them._

_ He couldn't help but think back to Rin and Obito, however, and felt shame unlike ever before. History once more repeated itself, and he still couldn't change a thing... Naruto and Sasuke had to witness the death of a beloved teammate, just as he did. Still, things could be remedied... The past could not be changed, but the future was always an uncertainty. Collecting himself, he carefully moved Naruto away from the puddle of stomach acid and half-digested field rations, laying him on his side. He stood took a few steps away from Naruto to make two Kage Bunshin, sending one to dispose of Haku's and Zabuza's bodies and sending the other to check Sasuke and Sakura's prone forms. _

_He saw Naruto stir, trying to push himself upright, only to fall back to the ground. A bitter smile formed underneath his mask. 'Just like his father...' He mused. The masked shinobi cast his gaze skyward for a moment, marveling at the sight of snowflakes falling in short radius around them. A byproduct of the hunter-nin's bloodline, he assumed. It would have made for a lovely sight, if it weren't for the tragic scene before him. He shook his head and returned to Naruto once more, lifting the boy - for he truly was just a boy, even in the cold and callous world shinobi lived in - into his arms and beginning the long, long walk back to Tazuna's house.  
_

**Flashback End**

There were certain procedures that shinobi of Konoha were required to follow in the case of a fatality during a mission. Immediately, Kakashi sent Pakkun to deliver the news to the Sandaime. He sealed Sakura's form within a large scroll, a complicated seal array upon it ensuring that she would remain preserved until the memorial service... Whenever it occurred. Due to the nature of senbon wounds, her body would be nearly unblemished. It would provide a little comfort to the mourners, not being forced to remember the nature of the shinobi world. For those who died on the battlefield with wounds too gruesome for the bodies to be shown, they were buried without much ado - returned to the earth to nourish the trees that their lives and homes were enveloped by. Only the Uchiha did not follow the custom; Their dead were burned upon a funeral pyre.

They reached Tazuna's house in decent time, Tsunami opening the door upon their arrival and staring at them aghast. Tazuna was looking absolutely ashamed, the gaze of a broken man; Kakashi was carrying Naruto and Sasuke over each shoulder, with the large scroll containing Sakura's corpse strapped to his waist. He nodded solemnly to her before making his way to the bedroom they stayed in the night before, placing Naruto and Sasuke down carefully before making his way into the living room.

His eyes turned hard as he faced Tazuna, knuckles turning white as he gripped the back of a chair.

"Sit down." The tone of his voice commanded obedience. Every single year of service was behind Kakashi's words, the whole weight of his career – a career forged by fire and quenched in the blood of Konoha's enemies - settling upon Tazuna's shoulders,

Tazuna promptly sat down.

"A shinobi of Konoha died today because of your lies. Not an experienced shinobi, either. A Genin. A child."

Tazuna sank lower and lower into his chair as Kakashi spoke, until he felt his head pulled backward, forced to stare Kakashi in the eye as one of his clones returned from his task. His eyes watered, grief filling him down to his very core.

"P-Please... Kakashi-san, I didn't intend for it to happen this way...!" The older man's eyes flickered to the side for a brief moment and Kakashi's attention turned to Tsunami, standing in the door frame with a tray of tea – a tray that clattered loudly to the ground as her eyes fell upon the scene before her.

Kakashi leveled his gaze upon her and she apologized profusely before scrambling out of the room. It was a simple matter to frighten a civilian away with even the slightest amount of killing intent, complemented by a faint, seal-less compulsion genjutsu. Kakashi had plenty of it to spare, at the time. He would apologize to her later, but right now he had to deal with Tazuna.

"Of course you didn't. But you still withheld information from us, and because of that an unprepared, inexperienced, extraordinarily outclassed team was dispatched to a mission that should have been taken care of by **at least** a team of Jonin!" His voice never rose in volume, but the power of his words grew with each syllable.

As Tazuna opened his mouth to speak, Kakashi slammed his hands down upon the table, the sharp bang the loudest sound in the conversation so far.

"You may speak when I'm finished. You understand that there will be repercussions for this. You were responsible for bringing us this mission, and you'll be held responsible for everything that happened."

Tazuna gulped, eyes widening as Kakashi continued.

"Obviously, money is only one part of the equation. You will be expected to pay the full price of the mission at whatever rank it is promoted to, be it A-rank, or even S-Rank. You will also be expected to pay for the funeral arrangements. Normally this is handled by the Hokage or the family of the shinobi, but given the circumstances, I think this change will do fine."

Kakashi's tone was colder than any frozen mirror, and Tazuna's face was as white as a ghost. He quivered under Kakashi's stare.

"In addition, you may as well consider the Land of Wave an unofficial satellite of Konoha. Given our... _Assistance_ in the economic rejuvenation, I'm sure it won't be much of a problem at all to provide them with goods and support if requested? Konoha was probably going to propose some sort of alliance after the fact regardless, but we may as well get that cart rolling while we're on the topic. It'll be a mutually beneficial agreement, of course; We're not Gato. But if Konoha calls upon the Land of Wave in a time of need, you **will** be expected to answer."

Tazuna was in tears by now, silent sobs wracking his form. Only now had it settled in what had truly happened – he was indirectly responsible for snuffing out one of the bright young lights that had arrived on his doorstep to assist him barely any time ago, and possibly darkening the other two lights that had survived. It was a crime against nature, what he had assisted in. He prayed to Kami that Naruto would forgive him – because he knew he'd never forgive himself. If it had been Inari who had been killed, by some chance... He didn't know what he'd have done with himself. Kakashi's reaction was perfectly understandable, and Tazuna could do nothing but nod his head in agreement.

Seeing Tazuna nod his head, Kakashi released his grip upon the table. He moved to pick up the tray that had fallen to the floor, placing it down upon the table neatly. He stepped into the other room, where Tsunami stared in his direction with a frightened expression.

"I apologize for causing such a scene, Tsunami-san. I thank you for your hospitality during our stay here. I only request that we be allowed to stay here for a few more days while my team recovers, but once they're in fit condition we'll be on our way." He bowed respectfully, Tsunami mimicking the gesture.

"You can stay as long as you need to. We're indebted to you and your team." Tsunami said, managing to keep herself composed. Kakashi thanked her and turned to leave, before he heard her voice once more - this time, her formal tone faltering.

"K-Kakashi-san... Is it true, what you said? Did Sakura-san...?"

Kakashi nodded his head gravely and had to look away as Tsunami stifled a faint sob. A tear rolled down his visible cheek as he exited the room. Tazuna was still where Kakashi had left him, strangely lacking a bottle of sake. Saying nothing, Kakashi made his way upstairs, where Naruto and Sasuke slept.

Naruto had moved in his sleep and was sprawled out across the small cot. Sasuke was as still as before, but some color had returned to his cheeks, and his breathing was a bit deeper - more relaxed. The two would recover in time – physically, at the very least. Mentally, Kakashi could only guess. He walked to the wall opposite of the door and sat down, leaning heavily against the wood. A few moments passed, and his own eyes drifted shut, the world-weary veteran slipping easily into a very light sleep.

**oooooooooooo**

Naruto's eyes slowly opened, and the first thing he noticed was that he was no longer on the bridge. The second thing he noticed was that he didn't seem to be anywhere he had ever been before. Darkness surrounded him, shadows warping and twisting, dancing in and out of his peripheral vision. A faint, rhythmic rumbling sound echoed within the scarlet-tinted abyss that surrounded him. It was almost like a massive creature breathing in and out. He stood and immediately frowned. There was no visible floor – yet, the ground beneath him felt rather solid. He took a few tentative steps forward and it remained the same. He walked for a few more steps and made no visible progress, before continuing to silently walking within the abyss he found himself in. It had to lead somewhere.

After what seemed like an hour of walking he had made no progress whatsoever, but he did feel a peculiar tingling sensation upon the back of his neck – as though he was being watched. He turned around and came face to face with... Darkness. Again.

He sighed and folded his arms over his chest. "Alright, I know you're there! Come out! And tell me where the hell I am, while you're at it!"

He stomped his foot, noting with some discomfort that it made no sound. For several agonizing seconds, there was only silence. Then, before him, a fissure in the darkness began to grow. Crimson seeped into the shadows that surrounded him, taking the form of a massive fox, towering above him in all its terrifying presence. The Kyuubi loomed over Naruto, a face-splitting grin upon its features. The demon fox spoke in a voice that boomed, a voice that shook mountains, that shook Naruto to the core.

**"About time you came to visit."**

Naruto nearly stumbled over his own feet at the ludicrous statement, eyes widening at the statement.

"What do you mean 'about time'?! Why should I visit you in the first place, ya giant furball!" He shouted, shaking his fist at the figure before him. For a creature that was supposedly imprisoned within him, he didn't see much in regards to bars, or seals, or anything of the sort. Yet, he was strangely comfortable before the Kitsune, somehow confident in the fact that it couldn't hurt him.

**"Oh, I'm hurt. First, I take care of you for the first dozen years of your miserable life, _then_ I give you the power to take care of that pesky little ninja that killed your mate, and I don't even get a visit every now and then? Not even a 'thank you'?"**

Naruto began to spoke, then paused, the Kyuubi's words sinking in. As Naruto's eyes widened, the Kyuubi stretched out before him, laying down with one paw folded over the other and its bright red eyes focused upon the statuesque boy before him.

"K-Killed...? So, Sakura-chan is...?"

**"Dead. Yes. You already knew this, however."**

"But Kakashi-sensei said...!"

**"That the Uchiha had survived. He never mentioned the fate of the pink-haired one before you passed out again."** The Kyuubi explained, the faintest semblance of regret seeping into its tone – seemingly directed more towards Sasuke's survival than Sakura's death. **"We'll have to work on that. I can't have my container passing out after every battle."**

Naruto fell to his knees before the Kyuubi, cradling his head within his hands. Hot tears spilled past his fingertips, onto the solid darkness below him. The Kyuubi sat there before him, patiently waiting. After a few minutes of sobbing the demon fox grew impatient and leaned in close to Naruto.

**"Enough crying, boy. You have two options here. You can give up hope and shrivel away into nothingness, or you can live up to that mask of bravado you maintain and get stronger. I can help you with either choice. Personally, I'd prefer if you gave up now. I'd be free again, and you'd be out of my fur. But if it's strength you choose... Well, I can give you strength beyond compare. Strength that will help you never lose one of your 'precious people' again."**

The Kyuubi's words had a saccharine tone to them, an addictive, alluring quality that gave Naruto pause. Tears still stained his cheeks, but he looked up at the fox with a growing determination.

"How...?"

**"Chakra is energy. It is a combination of physical energy – something you Uzumaki have an abundance of – and spiritual energy, something that /I/ have an abundance of."** The Kyuubi looked a bit proud of his statement, watching as Naruto tried to comprehend his explanation.

**"Combined, it results in chakra. Given your status as a jinchuriki, and an Uzumaki, you have incredible amounts of chakra... And this energy can be controlled. Manipulated. You've already seen what it can do on a simple level. Tree climbing, water walking... Even the Hyuuga's fighting style is dependent upon the manipulation of chakra."**

The fox paused for a few moments, letting it sink in. When Naruto nodded his head in some understanding, he continued.

**"With a bit of guidance, and more than a little of my chakra, you can do incredible things... Without the use of your jutsu, or seals, or whatever you call them."**

Naruto looked a little skeptical. "What kind of incredible things?" He asked, head tilting to the side.

**"Tsunade of the Sannin can supposedly destroy buildings with a single punch. I can flatten mountains with a single tail. You think that's done by raw power, or size? It's done by chakra. If you can master chakra, if you can master energy, you can become unstoppable... It won't happen overnight, however. It'll take more effort than you can imagine. It'll be your toughest challenge yet. But by the time you're finished, you'll be a legend, and nobody will be able to turn their back on you."**

Those words caught Naruto's attention. The fox was a tricky one, knowing exactly what strings to pull to entice the young boy. His eyes narrowed, however.

"What do you get out of it, though? Why should I trust you?" He pointed a finger up at the demon fox, a triumphant look in his eyes – as though having caught the fox with its hand in the cookie jar.

**"I get to enjoy that constipated look on your face as you try to control your own chakra. Amongst other things that are none of your business, boy. I can't bring your Sakura back from the dead... But I can help you prevent others joining her. Do you want my help or not?"**

Naruto thought about it for a good, long minute. He folded his arms over his chest, narrowed his eyes, scrunched his nose... The Kyuubi chuckled, highly amused by his jailer. Perhaps the demon fox has developed some parental instincts for the young male, or perhaps it had ulterior motives in offering Naruto a source of strength, but as it was, he was far too vulnerable right now to say no – the Kyuubi knew this, and fully intended on exploiting it. After several more moments, Naruto spoke up once more. His jaw was set in a way that reminded Kurama of the infernal man that had trapped him in this dark cage twelve years prior, and those even more familiar blue eyes were alight with a mix of determination and sadness that only warriors could know.

"Fine. Show me."

The Kyuubi's grin threatened to split its face in half. **"Good choice. Now go back to sleep. You need to be well rested for the trip home. There, we can begin." **It reached out with a large paw and shoved Naruto backward, into the darkness. He fell through the previously-solid floor and once more into the land of Nod.

**Chapter One: End.**


	2. Chapter 2

It's been quite some time, and I apologize for that, but between going off to college, finding a new job, and basically life itself I've had little time to return to this old project of mine. But, it's back, and hopefully I'll be able to consistently update for a little while over Summer break. For returning readers, please go back and re-read the first chapter - not only has it been a while, but I recently revised it and changed a few minor details that bugged me. A plot hole here and there, or just some clunky wording and sentence structure. There's an extended Author's Note at the end of this chapter, but that's the most important stuff out of the way - so, enjoy!

**Chapter Two**

The trip back to Konoha was made mainly in silence. Kakashi led the defeated child soldiers, Sasuke following shortly behind him and Naruto bringing up the rear by a few yards. His head was hung low, normally bright eyes overcast by shadows, but every few moments a flicker of determination would pass through them. He clenched and unclenched his fists every so often, knuckles turning white as thoughts of the battle ran through his head again and again.

Aside from when they first returned from the bridge and he had passed out from exhaustion, Naruto had barely slept for the remainder of their trip. Every time he closed his eyes for longer than five minutes, the image of his two teammates slumped against one another flashed through his mind. Sometimes it was Sakura riddled with senbon, other times it was both Sasuke and Sakura. One startlingly vivid nightmare had Kakashi being cleaved in half by Zabuza's massive sword, even if Naruto knew that the former ANBU had been more than capable of fending for himself.

Naruto shuddered at the crystal clear memory, his meager breakfast rising to the back of his throat. He swallowed hard, forcing his stomach back into some semblance of equilibrium. Naruto looked up from the dirt road just in time to collide with Sasuke, stumbling for a moment before straightening.

"Oi, what's the deal? Why'd we stop?" He asked, glancing from the disgruntled Uchiha to their sensei, who had turned to face both of them. Kakashi looked at them with a frown.

"We're about an hour away from Konoha. Less if we take to the trees. Normally we'd report immediately to the Hokage Tower for debriefing, but I think you two should return home first and foremost. I can give the Sandaime the majority of the details, then you two can come in and give your reports. It'll give you some time to collect yourselves."

The implications of their Sensei's statement was not lost on the two Genin. Naruto winced, and he caught Sasuke tense up out of his peripheral vision. Even the stoic Uchiha was hurting, even if he did a good job of appearing otherwise. The last living, loyal member of the Uchiha clan was no stranger to loss – but losing a teammate on a botched C-Rank was rough no matter how one looked at it.

"Naruto." The blond's head snapped up as Kakashi addressed him, the Jonin stepping off to the side and gesturing for him to follow. Naruto followed him to the side of the path and folded his arms across his chest, waiting for Kakashi to speak once more.

"I want to know how you're doing. How you're... Handling everything, all things considered." Kakashi began, picking his words slowly and carefully. "I understand how you felt about Sakura. But you can't hold yourself accountable for what happened. It was a freak accident." Naruto tensed, gripping his upper arm a bit tighter, seeming to withdraw into himself. It was an alien sight from the normally loud and boisterous young man.

"I-I know, Kakashi-sensei, but... If I had just been a little faster, or stronger, or knew more, maybe I could have prevented it, y'know?" He let his arms drop to his side, tugging absentmindedly on the fabric of his orange jumpsuit. "Maybe Sasuke wouldn't have been knocked out, and we could have taken out Haku quicker, before Sakura came to help." His shoulders slumped, helpless anger coursing within him – anger at his own shortcomings, at the whole situation they found themselves thrust into. He could handle the villagers' ire, their taunts and cold glances – if it happened to him, he could deal with it. He was used to it. But Sakura didn't deserve to be cut down like that. She was a good person, at heart, even if short-tempered at times, and for something as fickle as _chance_ to take her away from them... And while he might not have been able to stop the attack that did it, he could have prevented Sakura from joining them in the dome of mirrors, or gave her some kind of warning that had changed things. But it was far too late, now – and he had to deal with it.

Kakashi watched the clash of emotions going on behind Naruto's blue eyes, familiar with the train of thought that was surely running through the blond genin's mind. He crouched down in front of Naruto, looking him in the eyes with his one visible one. "Those are normal thoughts to have, Naruto, but you can't let them consume you. Cherish the times you had with her, but don't let yourself be swallowed by the past. We can only keep moving forward. Do you think Sakura would have wanted you to give up hope? She would have brained you over the head and told you to get back up and try again." They both chuckled at that, but Kakashi couldn't help but think of how much of a hypocrite he was. Maybe he should start following his own advice, but his situation was different... Wasn't it?

Either way, he didn't want Naruto following the same dark path that he did, and if he had the opportunity to cut it off before it even began, then he had to take it. In memory of Rin and Obito.

"Thanks, Kakashi-sensei." The cyclops straightened at Naruto's voice, suddenly reminded of Minato-sensei at the determination that filled his words. The Will of Fire was burning in his eyes, tinged with sadness as they might be, and hope filled his chest. Naruto nodded his head firmly, seeming to come to a decision, and began to walk back towards the main path. Kakashi smiled underneath his mask at the blond's ability to adapt and overcome, following after him. Given his upbringing, it shouldn't have surprised him, but it was still an impressive sight to behold. It would take time for the wounds to truly heal – if they ever did – but things were looking up.

Naruto stared at Sasuke's back as he returned to the main path, his teammate having turned away from the conversation to give them some semblance of privacy ,although there was no doubt that he had heard every word of it. He opened his mouth to speak, but Sasuke cut him off before he could even begin.

"The night Itachi... left." Naruto couldn't see Sasuke's face, but he could hear the scowl in his voice. That night was still a painful memory for him, and the pang of remembrance in his chest both angered and saddened him. "And every night afterward, I blamed myself. So I trained. The same way you've been training." All day and night until he had passed out from exhaustion, too tired to even remember his dreams. Naruto had been leaving the house shortly after everyone else fell asleep, and returned just a few hours before dawn, looking absolutely haggard. The blond wasn't exactly known for his subtlety, and a light sleeper such as Sasuke found himself observing his teammate's return more often than not.

Sasuke turned to face him, his normally stoic mask turned sharp and focused – directly on Naruto. The blond squared his shoulders and stared right back, and a flicker of understanding passed between them before Sasuke smirked.

"If you ever need a place to train, the Uchiha compound has several training grounds inside. Maybe if you trained with someone else instead of those clones of yours, you'll see some improvement."

Naruto's eyes narrowed and he almost snapped at Sasuke, before he realized just exactly what his teammate offered. Even Kakashi lifted an eyebrow from behind Naruto, lone eye flickering the two of them. After a moment, Naruto beamed brilliantly, clasping Sasuke on the shoulder.

"Yeah, I'd like that, te-... Sasuke. Kicking your ass will be great training!" He laughed, while Sasuke shook his head with amused annoyance. Kakashi leaned in and grasped both of their shoulders, eye smiling at the two of them.

"Look at my cute genin, finally getting along with one another! Enough delaying, then – let's go home." Kakashi leaped into the air, landing silently on a wide tree branch. Naruto and Sasuke glanced at each other before following after him, and the remaining members of Team Seven took off with a burst of speed, hearts growing lighter as they proceeded on the final stretch of their mission.

**Ooooooooooooooooooooo**

The towering gates of Konoha were an equally welcoming and nerve wracking sight for the weary shinobi. The trio emerged from the edge of the forest and began their walk towards the gate, greeted by the duo of Kotetsu and Izumo. Izumo stepped forward and examined the three of them glancing up at Kakashi after pointedly looking to Sasuke and Naruto. The slightest shake of Kakashi's head was all that Izumo needed to see, and he nodded sadly.

"I'll send a message to the Hokage that your team has returned. He should be waiting for you in his office by the time you arrive. You two won't have to accompany him. Your debriefing can be delayed a day or two without too much hassle. If it means anything, we're sorry about your loss."

The two Chunin were familiar with both Naruto and Sasuke, and while they knew of the rumors surrounding the blond-haired Jinchuriki, they had seen the way Naruto looked at Sakura... There was nothing malevolent in the adoring look he gave her. Neither of them deserved what had happened, but that was the shinobi world – harsh, unfair, and unforgiving.

The two genin nodded respectfully in response, but Naruto was too broken up to respond, and Sasuke had nothing to say. A frown was visible upon his face, however, as they stepped past the guards and into the village once more. The view of the village was a sight for sore eyes, but as happy as Naruto was to be home, there was a sadness within his eyes. Their return to Konoha only further cemented the reality of what he truly considered home – and what his home now lacked.

"Hey, Sasuke."

Sasuke paused, looking to Naruto as he spoke up.

"You want to go get some ramen?"

Sasuke thought about it, seeing the hopeful look within Naruto's eyes. Even after everything they went to, the thought of ramen seemed to cheer the blond up almost immediately.

"...Alright."

"Yatta! To Ichiraku's!" Naruto bolted off, leaving Sasuke and Kakashi in the dust. Kakashi smiled beneath his mask and Sasuke smirked slightly, following after his excitable teammate. Naruto's energy was contagious, at times. Even the roughest of stones could be worn down by a river's unrelenting tenacity.

**oooooooooooo**

Naruto burst through the curtains upon the door of Ichiraku's with a wide grin upon his face, some of that youthful innocent returning to his eyes as the familiar fragrance of savory broth and noodles filled his nostrils. Sasuke followed behind him, much more reserved in his entrance.

"Yo, old man! The biggest bowl of Miso you have, please!" He called out, finding himself an empty stool and slapping his hands down upon the counter. Some of the other customers sneered at him, or tensed in an effort to not look in his direction, but they knew better than to openly criticize the ramen stand's greatest source of revenue.

Ayame greeted the blond-haired shinobi and his companion with a warm smile, leaning over the bar to ruffle his hair affectionately. "Long time no see, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-san! Did you go out on a big mission? Where's your friend, Sakura-san?" She asked, head tilting to the side curiously. Naruto visibly tensed, eyes dimming and glancing off to the left. Just as he was about to answer, Sasuke spoke up.

"She had to stop by her house first." He explained in a neutral voice, to Naruto's surprise and Ayame's initially bewildered, but soon understanding expression. She accepted the explanation without much further prodding; The topic of family was a touchy subject for both of them, and it wasn't much of a surprise to her that Naruto didn't want to talk about it.

"One extra large bowl of Miso coming up, then! And anything for you, Sasuke-san?" She asked, smiling politely at the last Uchiha.

"Just a regular sized bowl of the same." He said, to which Ayame nodded and turned to step into the kitchen, relaying the new orders to Teuchi in the back. Naruto quickly turned to face Sasuke, anger sparking in his eyes.

"What're you doing, lying to Ayame-nee-chan?" He hissed in a hushed tone, still wary of those surrounding them.

"Naruto, it may not occur to you, but what happened on the mission could very well be a village secret. Until we report it to the Hokage, nobody else can know what happened. Once we do, we'll be given permission on whether or not we can let everybody know the truth."

Understanding lit up within Naruto's eyes and he cursed himself for not thinking of that. Of course it would be classified information. Their mission ended up being an A-Rank – it was rare for Chunin to be sent out on those, let alone Genin, and neither ranks were known for their tight lips. His shoulders remained slumped as he turned back to the counter, recognizing Teuchi as he stepped out of the kitchen.

"Yo, Naruto-kun! Heard you just got back from a big mission!" He declared, placing the two bowls of ramen upon the counter before them. Naruto nodded his head, almost too easily slipping back into that facade of bright-eyed innocence at the sight of the chef.

"Hai! Just got back, too!" He confirmed, to the older man's grin.

"Well, glad to see you got back safe and sound! Ayame-chan and I wouldn't know what to do if you stopped buying ramen here - we'd be out of business in no time!" Teuchi laughed, and Naruto laughed with him, eyes squinting foxily to hide how the laughter didn't extend all the way into them.

"No need to worry about me, old man! It'll take more than a C-rank to finish me off!" He grinned and beat his chest with his fist, mouth watering from the smell of the ramen before him.

"Well, to congratulate you on a job well done, consider these on the house!" Teuchi said, leaning over to ruffle Naruto's hair, before stepping away to return to the kitchen. He had other orders to make, and surely Naruto would be ordering a second or third round soon enough – especially after being told they were on the house. As he turned his back, Naruto's smile faded just slightly, but he eagerly grabbed his chopsticks and began digging into his ramen with a quick "Itadakimasu!"

Sasuke watched the entire exchange with narrowed eyes, easily able to pick apart Naruto's acting in front of the civilian chef – even without the Sharingan. He had done the exact same thing when he first lost his clan; But while he retreated inward, Naruto retreated outward. It made Naruto's behavior make a lot more sense, in reality; His hyperactivity and pranking in the academy, his brash and unthinking attitude in battle, and his boisterous personality with his peers. Feeling slightly more empathetic towards his blond-haired teammate with this discovery, he murmured his own "Itadakimasu" before beginning to eat. It was a rather good bowl of ramen, although he would never admit it aloud to Naruto, nor consume nearly as much as the jinchuriki did.

Kami only knew where he was putting all of it.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hatake Kakashi, the infamous Copy-Nin of Konohagakure, alighted the steps leading to the Hokage's office with some trepidation. The young civilian woman serving as a secretary to the Sandaime stood as Kakashi approached, eyes lighting up in recognition at the sight of him.

"Ah, Hatake-San. Hokage-sama has been expecting you – I'll let him know you're here."

She stepped inside the Hokage's office for a brief moment, before emerging once more, gesturing for Kakashi to proceed inside. Steeling himself, Kakashi walked into the Sandaime's office, his eyes settling upon his superior officer's own as he approached. He stood at attention before the elderly Hokage, awaiting his orders.

Sarutobi Hiruzen sat at his oak desk with his wide-brimmed Hokage hat hanging lowly over his face, obscuring his eyes within the shadows. His hands formed a steeple in front of him, the position of a man in power, a position that he was certainly befitting of. The hair upon the back of Kakashi's neck rose ever slightly – the faintest amount of killing intent seeping into the air, an oppressive force befalling Kakashi's shoulders. Kakashi, for his part, remained stoic before the Sandaime's intense gaze. After several long moments, the elder spoke.

"Report, Kakashi-san."

Without any further prompting, Kakashi told Hiruzen everything that had occurred in the mission – starting from their initial counter with the Demon Brothers, indicating that it was no simple C-rank, to his team's vote to carry on with the mission regardless, to their final battle upon the bridge and their departure home afterward. When he mentioned Naruto harnessing the Kyuubi's chakra, the Hokage lifted his hand, and Kakashi fell silent.

"Was he showing any signs of being influenced by the Kyuubi?" He asked, worry seeping into his words. Kakashi shook his head.

"No. Naruto was surrounded by a cloak of the chakra, but he was in control of himself the entire time... Anger had taken over when he thought he lost both Sasuke and Sakura, but that anger was entirely his own. Once I told him the fight was over, the chakra receded immediately."

Hiruzen's shoulder sagged with relief and some of the tension in the room faded away. Still, the Professor's gaze remained stern, and he began to speak once more.

"You still proceeded with the mission in spite of protocol. You of all people should know to retreat immediately should the parameters of a mission change to such an extent. You didn't, however, and we lost a precious member of the Leaf because of it." Kakashi hung his head in shame, that powerful ache within him returning once more. With every word that vice grip upon his heart tightened, memories of Rin and Obito rushing forth. The Sandaime continued despite Kakashi's increasingly-visible distress.

"You know of the usual punishment for going against mission protocol. However, I cannot ignore your history and your service for Leaf, nor can I disregard the fact that it was their decision to continue on with the mission. It is a tragedy, but the burden of it falls upon all of Team Seven, not just a single individual. Team Seven will be removed from the active duty roster until further notice, and will only be allowed to complete D rank missions and basic training exercises until a suitable third member can be found. As for you, Kakashi, you will be placed under watch until further notice. You will remain as Team Seven's sensei – it would tear those boys further apart if we were to remove you now – but all training sessions will be under supervision, until Team Seven is deemed ready to return to active duty. Team Seven is also barred from participating in the upcoming Chunin Exams, for obvious reasons. Understood?"

Hiruzen had a vague idea of who would be doing the supervising, once he could bring the man into town for an extended amount of time. Once he heard about his godson accessing the Kyuubi's chakra – which wouldn't be very long – it would only be a matter of time. Until then he could assign one of his ANBU to watch over him. Kakashi would certainly be able to tell, but it would have to do.

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

"You are dismissed, then."

Kakashi nodded his head and saluted the Hokage. Supervised probation, fewer missions, and exclusion from the Chunin Exams – which would have been a point of pride but nothing more for the Rookie Nine – was a light punishment, all things considered. The wizened Hokage knew that Kakashi was already punishing himself much more harshly. The Jonin left without further words – none were needed or would suffice – stepping outside of the office to _Shunshin_ out of sight.

The cyclopean shinobi appeared shortly thereafter upon the edge of the forest that lead into the familiar training grounds that Team Seven once occupied. He walked along silently, lost within his own thoughts. It struck him once more that he had failed his Genin as a teacher – had failed Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke as the person who was supposed to protect them and teach them as they carved out their own path in the shinobi world.

The dark side of him, the side borne from years of flawless service in the ANBU, idly mused that at least he only lost one of his students. The more human side of him crushed down those thoughts with a barely suppressed growl. That was unacceptable. He was Hatake Kakashi, son of the White Fang of Konoha – his name, and his father's name, could strike fear into enemies of the Leaf, he knew. At his prime, Zabuza and his apprentice would have been easily dispatched. Perhaps he needed to reevaluate his priorities in life, as he had done many times throughout the years.

Subconsciously, his idle wanderings brought him once more to stand before the Memorial Stone, staring down at the blank space where he knew Sakura's name would soon be inscribed. Unbidden, tears of fury and regret formed upon the corners of his vision. He clenched his fists, fingernails digging into the calloused palms of his hands – hands worn into dark leather from years of service to the Leaf, hands that had bled and would continue to bleed for the village he devoted himself to. Thinking of his two remaining students – the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi and the last living heir to the Uchiha legacy, a legacy he himself was a part of with his deceased teammate's eye – his misty eyes hardened, expression turning into one of grim determination.

He would not fail those two again. As he repeated the same vow he made in the Land of Wave before the Memorial Stone, he was vaguely aware of the blood dripping down from his palm, staining the grass at the foot of the monument. Unclenching his fist, he turned away from the list of fallen soldiers and disappeared once more in a swirl of leaves. Silently, the ANBU assigned to watch over him followed in suit, vanishing without the slightest sign of movement.

**oooooooooooooooooo**

As Naruto finished his sixth or seventh bowl of ramen – or perhaps even eighth, given how voraciously he dug into the noodles – Sasuke quietly finished his second, still lost in his thoughts regarding his blond teammate. Something had changed after Wave, he was sure. Of course, it was not a surprise – the two of them had failed Kakashi, and even more so, they had failed Sakura. Neither of them were strong enough to protect the pink-haired kunoichi, and she lost her life because of it. But ever since then, Naruto's hyperactivity had been dulled, the blond only showing brief glimpses of that overly optimistic persona he had before – and only when addressed by those who knew him strictly by that personality. To those who didn't know him – who hadn't fought, trained, and practically lived alongside him – it was barely noticeable. To Sasuke, who knew all too much about retreating into one's self after a loss, it was all too obvious. There was a grim fire behind those cerulean eyes, and it reminded him with a shudder of the demonic visage he had briefly glimpsed battling Haku before he had lost consciousness fully.

Even worse, it reminded him of himself, and the vow he had made to kill Itachi and avenge his family. A dark part of his psyche approved of the change: The reality of being a shinobi was finally settling in, and Naruto would grow all the stronger for it. The foremost thought, however, was how unfair the circumstances leading to that change were. Sakura didn't deserve what had happened to her. She was annoying at times, and perhaps too obsessed with her 'Sasuke-kun!', but she was a part of Team Seven, and dammit, he was _not_ tearing up. Not in the middle of the ramen stand Naruto loved so much, with him sitting right next to him and beginning to slow in his slurping down of the broth. He was broken out of his reverie when Naruto elbowed him in the ribs.

"Eh, Sasuke, you okay? You're letting your ramen get cold!" Trust the blond to only notice something was wrong by the fact that someone wasn't eating their _ramen_. With a grunt, Sasuke picked his chopsticks back up and resumed eating, using the motion to hide the fact that he was blinking away the slightest amount of moisture in the corners of his eyes. Naruto frowned, but after a moment finished the last of his broth, and leaned back in his chair with a sigh.

Things had definitely changed between them, Naruto mused. He wasn't the sharpest kunai in the armory, but he had his moments. It had been quite a while since Sasuke had called him 'dobe,' and just as long since he had called him 'teme' in return. While he was happy that the Uchiha had warmed up to him a little, even going so far as to showing a begrudging respect towards him, it was a bittersweet feeling. Well, it was beyond bittersweet. It left a terrible, rancid taste in his mouth, thinking back to the events on the bridge – worse than expired milk and all the other terrible flavors he could think of, combined.

His only solace was that he would never let it happen again – not if he had a say in the matter. He was still skeptical of Kyuubi's offer, but they had only been in Konoha for less than a day, and the Kitsune wanted him to rest and recuperate before their training began. Whatever that meant. He would find out what the demon fox meant by his offer of strength, and his implication that chakra was more than just something to fuel ninjutsu with, and if the monster sealed within him tried anything funny, he'd go to the Sandaime in no time flat.

Yes, the fox would help him protect his precious people, or he'd make sure the fox couldn't do a damn thing at all. Naruto lifted his head as he heard the bell at the entrance to Ichiraku's ring, glancing briefly over his shoulder. He was surprised to see Kakashi stepping through the flap, looking at the two with a serious expression – as serious as it could be, at least, with half his face obscured by a mask and hitai-ate.

"You know, I had hoped I had managed to teach you better eating habits, Naruto-kun, but I suppose I can't blame you." That cool facade of his irked Naruto for a moment, but he realized after a moment that Kakashi was probably hurting just as much as they were, if not more so. "And you too, Sasuke-kun? Surely you know about good eating habits!" The silver-haired Jonin sat himself down between the two, offering them a soft smile – one that not many bore witness to, they were sure. He ruffled the hair on both of their heads, much to their growing annoyance, before ordering himself a bowl of Miso ramen.

"I just finished reporting to Hokage-sama." He began, his tone turning somber. "How are you two holding up?"

The two Genin fell silent, Naruto's eyes falling to the empty bowl before him and Sasuke's off to the side, away from Kakashi. Sasuke, however, was the first to speak.

"It shouldn't have happened the way it did. We need more training." Kakashi frowned, but Naruto soon offered his agreement, nodding his head quickly, the wood of the chopsticks he held creaking as his grip tightened around them.

"We weren't strong enough, Kakashi-sensi... And Sakura-chan paid for it. If I'm going to be Hokage some day, and if Sasuke's going to defeat his brother... We need to get better. A lot better."

Sasuke nodded, and then after a moment, added, "As a team."

There were stories of the Sannin, a trio of shinobi from Konoha who were the strongest team ever produced. The three of them were an incredible asset to the Second Shinobi War, and absolute devastation upon the battlefield. Supposedly, not one was stronger than the other, and as a team they were practically unbeatable – even battling Hanzo of the Salamander and surviving. The trio had long since disbanded, but the stories remained, and were evidence to Konoha's core principle that working as a team could overcome any weaknesses or any obstacles an individual may have or may encounter. Perhaps, in Wave, if they hadn't been split up in the first place, things would have gone differently.

Kakashi listened to their declarations with an approving expression, patting them each upon the back.

"I'm glad to hear that you two have come to such a conclusion. I know Sakura would have approved of you two finally setting aside your differences." The two winced, but Naruto looked over to Kakashi and offered him a blinding grin.

"Oh, Sasuke's still a bastard... But he's my best friend, too, and we're both members of Team Seven." The aforementioned Uchiha grunted, flicking one of his chopsticks towards his blond teammate.

"Hn. The class clown isn't as stupid as he looks, either, I suppose." Naruto's grin turned into a look of outrage, and Kakashi had to push him back into his seat before he lunged across the counter at Sasuke. Their bickering was put on hold when Ayame placed a bowl of ramen before Kakashi, who separated his chopsticks, muttered an "Itadakimasu," and with blinding speed ate the bowl of noodles before him. Both Naruto and Sasuke watched with wide eyes at the speed at which Kakashi ate his meal, barely even removing his mask in the process. Kakashi sat back as the empty bowl spun slowly upon the counter, returning his attention to his students.

"That _is _some good ramen. I see why you come here so often, Naruto-kun. Anyway! As much as I approve of your newfound motivation, it will be a few days before we resume training. I would advise you both to head home and take some time off for yourselves. Try to relax and not over train too much – although I'm sure the two of you are going to ignore that advice anyway." He paused for a moment, then continued in a softer voice, once he was sure Ayame or Teuchi were out of earshot. "I'll contact you both to let you know when the funeral service will be. Until then, just be there for one another. We're still Team Seven, and those who abandon teammates are worse than trash, yes?" Sasuke and Naruto both nodded their heads, and Kakashi smiled, standing up and making his way out of the ramen stand.

"Good." The bell rung once more, and the silver-hair Jonin departed, just as quickly as he had arrived. Kakashi looked up to the Hokage Monument as he stepped outside, eyes lingering upon Minato's carving for several long moments.

_ I just hope I'm doing the right thing. What would you have done, Minato-sensei?They're young, but they have so much potential... Just like we did, back then. But I won't let history repeat itself. Those boys are going to change the world, with or without my help, and I'll make sure they're ready for whatever they face along the way. Or die trying.'_

Eyes narrowing, Kakashi vanished in a swirl of leaves. He had some things to do first, and an old friend to visit. While Naruto and Sasuke rested and recovered from the mission – however they felt appropriate – Kakashi needed that time to prepare their new training regimen. Thinking back to his debriefing with the Hokage, he couldn't help but feel suspicion. Nothing but D-ranks and team building exercises, under supervision no less. There were few Jonin in the village that could truly supervise Hatake Kakashi, which meant that the Sandaime was bringing in someone further along the chain of command. And being barred from participating in the Chunin Exams? Naruto was the village's Jinchuriki, whether he understood exactly what that meant or not, and Sasuke was the last of the Uchiha clan. It would be a foolish decision to /not/ put them in the limelight for the other villages to witness, unless...

Kakashi's visible eye widened as he made his way to one of the training grounds he was most familiar with. _Underneath the underneath_, he had told his Genin. Looks like The Professor could still school him any day of the week. A storm was brewing, and he wanted his strongest ready for it. As the sound of flesh impacting flesh and weapons clashing fell upon his ears, he smiled. A sense of nostalgia filled him as he stepped into the clearing, eye falling upon the horrendous sight of his old friend, who paused in his instruction of his team to grin broadly at him.

"Ah, Kakashi-san, my old rival!" Bellowed Maito Gai, clearing the distance between them in a split second and enveloping him in a bone crushing hug. "Have you come to witness me stoking the Flames of Youth in my team?" He asked, before sobering promptly, and adding, "I am truly sorry to hear about what happened during your mission. The Will of Fire burned bright in young Sakura-san, and it's a tragedy what happened."

Kakashi nodded his head respectfully, clasping his long time 'rival' on one of his broad shoulders. "That's actually part of the reason I'm here, Gai. I have a favor to ask. Consider it a challenge, actually. A team building exercise between the two of our teams."

Gai's eyes lit up and a fierce grin formed upon his face. "Yosh! And what might this challenge be, my eternal rival?"

"Well, you see..."

Back at Ichiraku's, a shiver ran down Naruto's spine. He looked around suspiciously, before returning to his bowl of ramen. Sasuke looked at him with a lifted eyebrow, to which Naruto gave a light shrug.

"Dunno what that was. But I have a bad feeling we'll be finding out soon enough."

**Chapter Two: End.**

A/N: Right, so, it really has been a ridiculously long time, and I don't have much of an explanation aside from life being life. Lots of things have been going on that have kept me from writing, but I'm trying to get back on the horse. This story is gonna be one way I do that. I've come to the conclusion that this is gonna be a bit of a more fluid fanfiction, undergoing a lot of constant revision and tweaking, with a main plot at the center of it that the story will build itself around. The plot hasn't become evident yet, but it will in time. It is very much an experiment at this point, and I'm just seeing where it will go from here. I have ideas in mind, and ways to make them happen, but what happens in between I don't even know for certain. Just rest assured that it will inevitably be finished, through hell or high water, and hopefully in the end it'll all be worth it. If not, oh well, there's always the next story. So, as always, read and review, and see everyone next time!


	3. Chapter 3

An update, you say? But it hasn't even been a year yet! I know, inspiration struck and I managed to type this one out in a decent amount of time, all things considered. Trying to get things rolling with the story in a way that works. We'll see how it all turns out. Introducing some new tricks, some new twists, and so on.

I appreciate all the favorites and follows I've been getting, and the one or two reviews that have been coming this way.

To the one concerned reader who said they'd stop reading the story if Sasuke and Naruto got closer and ended up involved romantically, that wasn't the original plan, but if stories tend to take on a life of their own after a certain point. If they just so happen to end up bumping uglies, I'll make sure to put lots of trigger warnings up first.

Spoiler alert: They (probably) won't, because I'm terrible at writing romance, but with /that/ particular mental image in your head, here's chapter three.

**Fable of the Rouge Tails: Chapter Three**

Naruto awoke groggily as a beam of light fell across his face, the bright morning sun shining through a gap in his curtains. He groaned and rolled over, shielding his face with an arm, struggling to think of reasons to get out of bed. A terrible lethargy had settled into his bones the moment he arrived home after visiting Ichiraku's with Sasuke the day before, and he almost immediately collapsed into his bed. Even the cold wooden floor would have been suitable with how exhausted he had been – both from finally being home and from the mission itself.

He was just about to fall back asleep when a light rapping on his window made him jolt awake. He cursed under his breath and rolled out of bed, stumbling his way to the window and wrenching it open with a type of fury only a non-morning person could manage. He wasn't expecting a massive man in a skin tight green jumpsuit to greet him, however, and promptly fell backward with a startled yelp.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun!" The man shouted, with no regard for an inside voice, as he nimbly climbed through the window and stood before Naruto in all his horrendous glory. "I expected a student of my eternal rival to be awake by this time, but no doubt you were tired from your mission, and the Flames of Youth cannot burn brightly without being well rested first, so it is no matter!"

Naruto stared wide-eyed as the man struck a pose, giving him a thumbs up and a wide grin. After a pause, Naruto began to laugh hysterically, clutching at his belly as he curled into himself. His shoulders shook and tears brimmed at the corners of his eyes, the blond laughing for a good few moments before they settled down into rough chuckles, then a beaming grin of his own. He hopped up to his feet after he had recovered, taking a moment to examine the man a little more closely.

Tall and built like a brick shithouse, he had the characteristic traits of a taijutsu specialist, for certain. Rough and calloused knuckles were visible on both fists, the man seeming content to hold his pose while Naruto examined him. The most distinguishable traits, however, was the man's dark hair – cropped short in a bowl cut, of all things – and his thick, bushy eyebrows, that wiggled with just as much personality as the rest of him. He wore a Jonin flak jacket over the skin tight jumpsuit, and his headband was wrapped around his waist instead. Orange legwarmers were around his ankles and Naruto could appreciate the choice in color, although they appeared to serve no function otherwise – a strange fashion choice for a veteran Jonin, but certainly there had to be _something_ about them that he was missing.

The man mentioned him being a 'student of my eternal rival,' so he must have known Kakashi-sensei, who always reminded them to look underneath the underneath. That alone was enough to make Naruto suspicious, but he was a Jonin of the Leaf, so he doubted they were all that malevolent in nature.

Besides, the orange and green outfit was kinda awesome. So, acting on impulse, Naruto decided to go with the flow.

"Eternal rival of Kakashi-sensei? Oh, I remember! Kakashi-sensei always talked about you!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing a finger at the man before him. His grin grew even wider at that and he puffed his chest out, both fists planted firmly upon his hips.

"Is that so? Then surely you must know why I'm here!"

At this, Naruto's head tilted to the side, a thoughtful frown appearing on his face. "Nope, not at all. I actually don't know who you are, either. But your outfit is awesome!" He broke out into a dazzling grin, striking a thumbs up pose of his own at the Jonin – who reeled back in exaggerated shock and then hung his head with shame.

"Of course Kakashi-san's team would pick up his coolness. No matter! At the very least, you appreciate the glory that is the Konoha's Sublime Green Beast of Prey, Maito Gai, and his amazing taste in clothing!" He clapped his hands together, the impact causing a faint shockwave, to Naruto's shock. Taijutsu specialist, indeed.

"Now, since Kakashi-san saw fit to keep you out of the loop, I will inform you myself! Your sensei has challenged me to a team building exercise between our two teams, and I wanted to introduce myself before our teams met on the field of battle! It isn't for a few more days yet, but I couldn't wait to meet Kakashi's students." Gai grinned, taking a few steps towards Naruto. He looked at him critically, a small frown forming.

"Have you been eating well, Naruto-kun? You look a bit small for your age." The blond genin glared up at him, folding his arms obstinately over his chest.

"I eat just fine! Maybe you're just too tall?" Naruto countered. Gai thought it over for a moment before shaking his head and ruffling Naruto's hair with a large, calloused hand.

"Naruto-kun, as I'm sure Kakashi-san has told you, malnourishment is a very serious thing for shinobi. When we train, we push our bodies to the limit, and proper diet is how we heal and rebuild our bodies to surpass our previous limits. If you're ever going to get stronger, you need to start eating well." The abrupt shift in demeanor threw Naruto for a loop, but made Gai's message all the more impactful because of it, and Naruto found himself nodding dejectedly in agreement. All the training in the world wouldn't help if his body couldn't rebuild itself; While he was sure the demon fox's chakra helped that process a little, nothing knew the inner workings of the human body better than the body itself.

"Hai, Gai-sensei!" Naruto said, unfolding his arms and letting them return to his sides. Gai nodded approvingly in response.

"Good! Now, I have to meet my team for training, but don't forget what I said! And I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again within the next few days. Kakashi-san will let you know when our training session will be, so make sure you're ready for it! I can't wait to see how my team faces off against Kakashi's hip genin!"

And just like that, the colossal man disappeared out the window in a burst of raw speed, leaving Naruto still confused and reeling from the bizarre encounter. He shook his head and made his way to the kitchen, pausing as he glanced at his alarm clock out of his peripheral vision.

"IT'S ONLY SIX IN THE MORNING?!"

**oooooooooooooooooooooo**

After a long shower and a quick breakfast – consisting of rice, eggs, and some fruit that he had a clone begrudgingly retrieve from the just-opened market – Naruto sat down on his worn out couch with a huff. His leg bounced with restless energy, heel tapping a fast-paced rhythm against the hardwood floors. He was heavily considering ignoring Kakashi-sensei's advice to rest and recuperate and, instead, find somewhere to train and burn off some energy – he felt perfectly fine, and he wasn't going to get stronger just sitting around his house.

Naruto pushed himself to his feet with a determined expression, took three steps, and promptly fell flat on his face. Stars flashed before his eyes before darkness overcame his vision, blotting out everything.

When Naruto's eyes opened again, he was still surrounded by darkness, but this time he was sitting before the massive Kyuubi no Kitsune, who looked just as shocked as he was at his sudden appearance.

**"Wow, I didn't think that would work."** The fox grinned, looking down at Naruto, who had jumped to his feet with an outraged expression.

"What the fuck, furball! You could have given me a warning before dragging me down here!" He rubbed his forehead, still feeling phantom pains from his collision with the floor. The Kyuubi chuckled in response, the deep sound reverberating throughout the dark abyss strangely well.

**"I could have, and probably should have, but it was worth it to see your expression."** Seeming to be satisfied with this answer, the Kyuubi sat back onto its haunches, looking down at Naruto intently. The blond stared back for a moment, before sitting down abruptly and folding his arms.

"Care to tell me what you did to bring me down here?" He asked, head tilting to the side. The Kyuubi pondered the question for a moment before deigning to answer.

**"The seal on your stomach works by slowly filtering my chakra through your system, letting you build up a tolerance for its otherwise toxic nature. When you first called upon my chakra, the seal 'widened' in a way to allow for more chakra to come through. With more chakra, came more of my own ability to influence you. Nothing serious, regretfully, but enough control to disrupt the chakra flow to the tenketsu by your feet to make you trip, your arms to stop you from catching yourself, and just briefly to your skull to make the impact enough to knock you out. It's a petty little trick, one that even a novice at chakra control can counter, but luckily, you're not even a novice."**

Naruto's eyes continued to widened as the Kyuubi explained what happened, only to narrow at the implied insult to his chakra control. He stayed quiet, though, because it was annoyingly true.

"How do I stop you from doing it again?" Naruto asked, instead of shouting insults in response like his first instinct was, focusing on the towering kitsune above him. The fox nodded his head approvingly, looking satisfied with the question.

**"That, kit, is going to be lesson one. Identifying – and stopping – foreign chakra signatures. It's something that even you humans have realized as an important skill to have. Your... Genjutsu, I believe it's called? Relies heavily on using your chakra to influence an opponent's chakra network, to cause anywhere from physical symptoms – such as you tripping and falling oh-so-amusingly – to mental symptoms, such as intense hallucinations. You don't have nearly the level of control to do this, let alone what I /actually/ have in mind for you to do, but what you do have is that damned Uzumaki determination and an excellent teacher in yours truly."** He puffed his chest out proudly, before abruptly shrinking in size until his head was at the same level as Naruto's, putting them directly in reach of one another.

Naruto took several cautious steps back, reaching instinctively for the weapon holster on his leg. The fox's tails twitched and he gave Naruto an amused smirk. **"I was getting a kink in my neck having to look down at you."** The Kyuubi explained simply, tails curling loosely around his frame. Naruto frowned, but relaxed after a moment.

"Alright, fine, that's lesson one. And how am I supposed to know if someone else's chakra is messing with mine?"

**"Simply put, you have to be extremely aware of your own chakra. Since you have so much of it, and anybody skilled enough in manipulating it will use very little, it's going to be difficult – at first. It's going to be like finding a drop of blood in the ocean. Sharks can do it, but you're a minnow in comparison, so we'll start easy. I'll use a lot – and I mean a /lot/ - of chakra at first, to make it obvious, and then every time afterward use less and less until you can consistently stop the most miniscule amount of chakra from disrupting your own. You'll be shrugging off Genjutsu easily by the time we're done, and by then your control should be good enough to start on the real fun stuff. Now, let's try it out and see how your control stands."**

The Kyuubi straightened, and suddenly focused intently on Naruto, crimson eyes flaring with a surge of raw chakra. Naruto staggered, falling abruptly to his knees, the feeling in his legs almost completely gone. He struggled to push himself to a standing position, but each time his legs would collapse beneath him, failing to respond to even the most instinctive commands.

Remembering the Kyuubi's words, he focused on his legs, searching for any chakra that wasn't his. Concentration turning inward, he didn't see the kitsune's smirk. He followed the flow of chakra from his chest, to his stomach, down towards his legs, where it abruptly stopped entirely. Frowning, he turned his attention to his hips and waist, still feeling his own chakra.

He blinked, suddenly noticing an itching sensation on his back, perfectly aligned with his spine. He focused on the sensation and gasped – the fox wasn't lying when he said he would use a **lot** of chakra the first time. The red chakra enveloped the chakra coils and tenketsu around his lower spine, practically cutting off all the circulation in the area and – essentially – disabling his legs entirely. Beads of sweat had begun to form from his concentration, and he took a chance to look up at the fox questioningly. He found the foreign chakra – now what?

**"There's a few ways to dispel foreign chakra in your system. Cutting it off from the source is the most efficient method, but also requires the most control. You can also disperse it with your own chakra, provided you have enough. Which, you do. Most Genjutsu specialists will have a hard time keeping you trapped, for that fact alone – you can just overwhelm their Genjutsu with a chakra pulse of sufficient size. There are some techniques that cannot be broken with that method, but with enough training the first method should almost always work. If it doesn't, then their control is much better than yours, and you should focus on breaking their concentration or just not getting caught in the first place."**

Naruto took a moment to filter out the extraneous information – the fox definitely liked to hear himself talk – before deciding on the appropriate course of action. He couldn't even sense the link to the source of the Kyuubi's chakra, although he knew it had to be somewhere near his stomach, so he willed his own chakra to surround the mass, squeezing down on it from all sides, until he felt it 'give in,' and felt his chakra begin to mix with the foreign chakra. Then, he took his condensed chakra, now interspersed with the foreign chakra, and simply _let go_. The resulting pulse wept away the Kyuubi's chakra, leaving him out of breath with pins and needles all along his legs. He pushed himself to his feet and, ignoring the uncomfortable tingling sensation, grinned triumphantly.

"Take that, fox!" Naruto stomped around on the darkness that composed his mindscape, relishing in the renewed feeling and control in his legs.

**"Don't get too cocky, brat. You were sitting there with a constipated look on your face for thirty minutes before you finally disrupted my chakra. Time flows differently in here, so it wasn't as long in the real world, but that's still an inexcusable amount of time to detect such a large amount of chakra. The Uchiha could have performed two of those overgrown fireballs with that amount, to put it in perspective." **

His chakra was much more potent than human chakra was, but the boy didn't need to know that.

Naruto stumbled in his celebratory marching, turning to face the Kyuubi with shock etched all over his features.

"Thirty minutes?! No way! I refuse to believe that it took that long!"

**"Well, believe it."** The fox paused, then shook his head, sighing loudly – much to Naruto's confusion. **"Anyway. Yes. Thirty minutes. We've still got a few hours, so let's see if we can't improve that time. Try again."**

This time, instead of his legs giving out, Naruto's vision abruptly went dark – causing him to blindly lash out in the fox's general direction and utter a low stream of curses, to the Kyuubi's undying amusement.

**"What, did you think I was gonna go for the same spot twice in a row? Do I look like an amateur?"**

Grumbling noisily, Naruto carefully lowered himself to the floor, beginning to focus on his chakra once more.

**Ooooooooooooooooooooo**

Some time later, Naruto growled in frustration, trying to restore his control of his left hand. His eyes lit up when the limp appendage suddenly clenched into a fist, but frowned as he realized that he hadn't done anything.

**"Looks like you're needed in the waking world."** The Kyuubi idly commented, lifting his head from his paws, looking only slightly disinterested. The boy had made adequate progress in identifying and neutralizing foreign chakra in his system – it still took him a minute of concentration to dispel it, but his pulses of chakra were becoming more efficient and controlled.

Kurama forgot to mention that hand seals could make the process much faster, but he was teaching the blond a much older, much /stronger/ method overall, and it would benefit him further in the end to learn chakra manipulation the way it was meant to be learned.

"Oh, shit!" Naruto jumped to his feet, looking around wildly. "Uh. How do I leave?" He asked, looking to the still-laying fox for guidance.

**"It's your mind, kit. Just will yourself to wake up, the same way you will your chakra to move. In the future, you can return here by meditating and willing your mind to turn inward, essentially the same process except in reverse."** Kurama nodded lazily, letting his head settle back once more on his paws.

"Oh, okay. Uh." Naruto hesitated for a moment. "Do you have a name, or anything? It seems a bit weird to call you 'The Kyuubi' all the time." He scratched the back of his head, watching as the fox quirked his head to the side slightly, surprise evident in his deep red eyes.

**"Yes, I do. No, I won't tell you what it is. Kyuubi is my title, and Kyuubi will suffice. Don't think your training is over, either. I can still disrupt your chakra flow without you being in here in my... Humble abode."** He grinned, showing probably more teeth than appropriate, before he adjusted his position and settled down once more. His eyes closed after a moment, and Naruto huffed at the dismissal. He looked upward, as well as he could in the abyss of darkness, and 'willed' himself to wake up – which more or less consisted of him clenching his eyes shut and chanting "wake up wake up wake up."

When his eyes opened, he found himself laying on his stomach on the cold hard wood floor of his apartment, a puddle of drool sticking his cheek to the floor. Someone was knocking very loudly, very consistently on his door, pausing for five seconds before resuming the steady beat.

"I hear you, I hear you." Naruto shouted, pushing himself to his feet and walking to the door. He wrenched it open and found himself facing Sasuke, flanked by Kakashi, both of whom had concerned expressions upon their faces. Naruto frowned, then glanced down at himself. He was still wearing his pajamas, he realized – bright orange with leaping frogs all over the fabric.

Kakashi had his nose stuck in that orange book of his, but his one visible eye was crinkled with suppressed laughter, and Sasuke had an irritating smirk on his face. Naruto growled and took a few steps into his apartment, leaving the door open as a silent invitation for them to come in while he quickly went to his room to change.

Kakashi and Sasuke stepped into the small apartment as Naruto disappeared further inside, looking around unashamedly at the interior. There were sparse decorations and furnishings – a sofa, table, and television composed his living room, with a single bookshelf containing a wide variety of scrolls and books. A lone plant was tucked away in the corner, its leaves a bit droopy, but otherwise appearing healthy. The kitchen seemed fairly well stocked, and Kakashi noted with some satisfaction that there was a fruit basket on the counter.

Sasuke noticed all of this as well, although just a few seconds slower than the seasoned veteran behind him, and without much preamble found himself a spot on Naruto's couch to sit down. Kakashi chose to lean on the counter instead, eye darting down at the slick spot still drying on the floor. He made a note of it, but didn't comment.

Naruto returned a few minutes later, dressed in his usual attire, although he was still fumbling to get his left arm through the sleeve – the limb seemingly unwilling to cooperate with him. _'Damn fox.'_ He thought to himself, before grinning at Sasuke and flopping down onto the couch next to him.

"So, what's up, Kakashi-sensei?" He asked, glancing between him and his teammate, who both looked at him with serious expressions.

"It's time we gave our debriefings to Hokage-sama." Sasuke answered, his tone mild, but Naruto caught a hint of trepidation in his coal eyes. The blond sobered immediately and nodded his head, pushing himself to his feet in a lazy motion.

"Guess we better get to it, then." He said, straightening his jacket before tucking his hands into his pockets – mainly to hide the fact that he just lost most of the feeling in them, but also because it was comfortable. "Don't want to leave Hokage-jiji waiting."

Naruto waited until both Kakashi and Sasuke had agreed and made their way towards the door before focusing on the flow of chakra in his wrists, a faint pulse of his own chakra restoring the feeling with that uncomfortable, but now familiar feeling of pins and needles all along his skin.

Halfway out the door, Kakashi glanced back at Naruto, frowning beneath his mask. He could have sworn he felt a pulse of chakra from the genin, but Naruto looked completely normal, if a bit downcast – which was understandable, all things considered. He watched him straighten a few things on the way out the door and clench his fists a few time, almost like his hands were asleep, before Naruto followed them outside and shut the door. He locked it in a practiced motion and they made their way down to the main road, heading towards the Hokage's Tower in the distance.

"Did you sleep well, Naruto-kun?" Kakashi asked idly, standing between the two genin as they walked along the road.

"Not bad." He replied, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders. "A friend of yours stopped by." He added after a second, keeping his eyes fixed on the road in front of him to hide the mischievous smirk forming on his face.

"A friend?" Kakashi repeated, head tilting to the side.

"Yeah! Big guy. Black hair. He was wearing this really awesome outfit. Uh, one sec, lemme show you." Kakashi's eyes widened imperceptibly as Naruto pivoted on his heel, hands flying through the seals for the Henge, before a burst of smoke surrounded his form and both Kakashi and Sasuke reeled back with shock.

"Yosh!"

Naruto stood before them, for all intents and purposes looking exactly the same, except now wearing a skin tight green jumpsuit and orange legwarmers, much like Gai's own outfit. He stuck one fist out, thumb pointed straight up, and grinned at the two equally stunned shinobi before him.

_'Kami, he even got the grin down.'_ Kakashi thought, watching the sun glint off the blond's teeth in a manner eerily reminiscent of his long time friend. Sasuke's thoughts were much more concise, and also spoken aloud:

"What the hell, Naruto." His tone remained even, but an eyebrow twitched as he tried to hold back an amused chuckle. There was no way a self-respecting shinobi would dress like that. Absolutely not. Sure, the green worked as good camouflage, but to add _orange_ to the whole ensemble? Only Naruto would have thought of that combination.

Naruto, meanwhile, held the pose for a second longer before succumbing to raucous laughter, holding his belly as he doubled over. He yelped when Kakashi rapped him on the head, dispelling the Henge, but his eyes were still watery from laughter as he straightened and tried to regain his composure. "Worth it." He wheezed, wiping tears from his eyes as he resumed walking along the path. He rubbed his head where Kakashi had struck him, and a brief pang of hurt shot through him – if Sakura were there, he'd still have been coughing up dirt from the hit. His eyes dimmed a little, but he carried on, keeping his head up as they made their way towards the Hokage Tower.

"What did Gai say, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, sensing the blond retreat into himself just slightly. He kept his head up, but his shoulders had slumped a little and drew forward, as though he was trying to make himself smaller. It was a slight shift in body language, but enough for the Jonin to notice.

"He mentioned a team building exercise between our team and his. And talked about fire. A lot." Naruto paraphrased, but Kakashi got what he meant easily. He had had a similar conversation with Sasuke before taking him to meet up with Naruto, and it wasn't surprising that Gai had wanted to meet Naruto before their scheduled little 'exercise.' The two shinobi certainly had enough similarities to be good friends and allies with time – incredible endurance, energy, and a hardheaded determination to do the impossible at every turn. He shuddered as he thought about what would happen when Naruto met Rock Lee, whom Kakashi had heard about from Gai at their weekly outings at the various bars and restaurants that Jonin and their ilk frequented.

"Gai is a little... Eccentric." Kakashi said after a moment. Naruto scoffed at the same time Sasuke did, and they shared a glance.

"Wait, so Naruto's getup...?" Sasuke interjected, looking back at Kakashi incredulously. No way.

"Was a very convincing imitation of Gai's uniform. Yes. Like I said, Gai is a little eccentric, but he's an elite Jonin for a reason." Kakashi nodded his head seriously, and both of his genins just shook theirs in response.

"I guess the stronger you get, the weirder you get. What about Hokage-jiji, then?" Naruto asked, a strange look appearing in his eyes. Kakashi was quick to cut off that train of thought.

"Whatever it is you're thinking, Naruto, please save it for another time. We are here on official Konoha business, remember." Naruto winced at the reprimand, but took it in stride, looking up as they approached the doors to the Hokage Tower. He nodded at the two Chunin guarding the doors, who returned the gesture with professional ones of their own.

"Team Seven, reporting for debriefing." Kakashi stated, and the Chunin nodded their heads, stepping aside to grant them entry. Early in the morning, the Hokage was often times busy with dealing with council members and advisers, and had to restrict who entered during the first few hours of the day – but shinobi affairs were prioritized, as Konoha was, after all, a shinobi village. They might have to wait for an ongoing appointment to end, but they would be seen promptly after were that the case.

As it was, they approached the secretary's desk and were ushered inside without much hassle, although the young woman offered a sympathetic smile to the young Genin as she announced their arrival. They stepped inside and the trio saluted their Hokage in sync, the motion just as much muscle memory as the rest of their shinobi training.

Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled that grandfatherly smile of his and gestured to the chairs before his oak desk. "Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, please, sit." He waited patiently for the two Genin to make themselves comfortable, while Kakashi leaned up against the wall with his little orange book in hand, but unopened.

The Sandaime sighed heavily as he produced his pipe, tapping it a few times before placing it on the desk within easy reach. A sorrowful expression was upon his face, reflected in deep pools of brown. "First of all, I am deeply sorry to hear of what happened to Sakura-san. Rest assured that she will be remembered, and her name will be added to the Memorial Stone in honor of her service to Konoha."

Naruto's eyes filled with tears and he hung his head, allowing his bangs to hide his face from view. Sasuke's eyes flickered downward for a moment and his jaw clenched, but he allowed no tears to fall. Kakashi's knuckles turned white gripping his book, but they remained silent as the Hokage began to speak once more.

"The memorial service will take place tomorrow, at noon. It may seem abrupt, but sometimes it is best to avoid drawing such things out for too long, so that we do not allow these kind of wounds to linger. It will be a small service, at the request of the Haruno clan, but as her teammates they wished to extend to you invitations as well." Naruto nodded his head automatically, Sasuke nodding in concert with him.

Bitterly, Naruto couldn't help but muse that the invitation was given very reluctantly – the Haruno clan was mainly a civilian clan, from what he remembered, and his standing with the civilian populace was unsteady at best. Their attitudes had improved after his graduation from the Academy, but he still noticed plenty of scornful or disgusted expressions walking down the street. Maybe even more so upon his return to the village – had word traveled that quickly, that there were already rumors starting to circulate about what had happened? So much for potentially top secret information.

Naruto was broken from his increasingly morbid thoughts as the Sandaime continued to speak, taking the brief lapse in the dialogue to change subjects.

"Now, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, I've already received Kakashi-san's report on your mission. I would like to hear each of your perspectives, as well, as I am led to believe that you were separated on several occasions throughout the mission – yes?" Sarutobi leaned forward and steepled his fingers, peering at the Genin patiently.

Sasuke was the first to speak up, taking Naruto's brief hesitation as the sign for him to break the tension. He began a calm, collected retelling of the events of the mission, from their departure to their final battle in the dome of mirrors, pausing only briefly as he described being knocked unconscious and waking up to discover what had befallen their teammate. He cleared his throat, then concluded his recounting of the mission with their uneventful departure from Wave via water walking. It was an unspoken fact that the Genin were reluctant to take the bridge the mainland, instead crossing over the water as an excuse to get a little more practice in.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun, for your report. Do not feel bad about what happened on the bridge. From what I've been told, this hunter-nin was at least high Chunin, low Jonin in level, and it speaks greatly of the both of you to have faced him as valiantly as you did. What happened with Sakura-san is the result of chance, not of your weakness."

They had heard it before, but still nodded their heads in response. Sarutobi wasn't about to admonish them as he did Kakashi; They were still children, and more prone to mistakes than older Jonin were. Any reprimands were to be relayed to their Jonin instructor and, through them, to the Genin – but they were hardly at fault in the situation, either way.

"Now, Naruto-kun, for your report." The blond stiffened as attention turned to him, head snapping up to look straight at the Hokage. He swallowed, taking a breath to steady himself, before beginning his own recounting of the mission. He glossed over the details that had already been covered by Sasuke and no doubt Kakashi, instead focusing on his experiences with Haku in the forest, and their second meeting on the mist-covered bridge. He shuddered and had to pause for a moment as he described the battle to them, in excruciating detail, unable to tear the image of Haku's crushed skull beneath him out of his mind.

The meeting between them in the clearing was an interesting detail, but Sarutobi and Kakashi were particularly focused on Naruto's description of the Kyuubi's chakra – furious and terrible and powerful. The Professor and the cyclops exchanged a glance and a subtle nod, concern evident in both of their faces.

When Naruto finished his own narration, he was on the edge of his seat, looking a little more pale than before. His expression was schooled into one of professional detachment, an impressive imitation for a Genin, but his eyes betrayed his feelings - roiling pools of sadness and frustration, with a steely glint of determination beneath them. Sarutobi couldn't help but feel pride at the all too familiar expression – so, so reminiscent of Minato. Suddenly reminded of his age, the Hokage nodded his head, offering Naruto an empathetic smile.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun. I know it's difficult, and while with time the pain will fade, some of it always stays with us. It is through the Will of Fire that we carry on and do not let the sacrifice of our teammates go to waste, and you certainly have the Will of Fire within you. Remember that, and keep training, and I'm sure you'll make a fine Hokage one day." Naruto smiled at that, brightening just a little bit, before Sarutobi continued.

"Now, that is all for now. Sasuke-kun, you are dismissed, but I need to keep your sensei and teammate for just a few minutes longer. You're free to wait for them outside, if you so wish." Sasuke looked at the Hokage questioningly, but stood and saluted once more before making his way out the door. He lingered just a few feet away from the door, straining his ears just in case he overheard anything. It was highly unlikely, but he wouldn't have been much a shinobi if he didn't try, at the very least.

Once the door to the Hokage's office swept closed, Sarutobi grabbed his pipe and lit it with a sealless Katon jutsu, taking a drag from the smoldering, exotic leaves and letting it out slowly. As he did, Kakashi stepped forward, standing behind and to the left of Naruto. When the Sandaime focused once more, it was a flinty gaze that fell upon Naruto, whose eyes widened at the sudden attention. He became overly aware of Kakashi hovering behind him, an elite Jonin in his own right, and the Hokage – the /strongest shinobi in the village/ - positioned in front of him, looking all the more like the war veteran he was with every passing second. It was an intimidating position to be in, and Naruto grew more and more unnerved as they focused on him.

Suddenly, Naruto became aware of a tingling on the back of his neck, almost like the Kyuubi's chakra during his training – except much more subtle, and much less malevolent. Just as he realized that it was a Genjutsu of some sorts, and began to focus his own chakra to disrupt it, he felt Kakashi's hand on his shoulder and snapped his head to the side to look at him. His lone eye focused on him and Kakashi's hand squeezed down firmly, but gently, and Naruto suddenly understood – and immediately, the oppressive presence lifted, and the tension in the air quickly faded away.

"He's not under the influence of the fox, Hokage-sama." Kakashi announced after a second, and Naruto's look of shock quickly turned into a scowl.

"Of course I'm not being influenced by the fox! The stupid furball is trapped inside /me/, not the other way around." Naruto stated simply, to the amusement of the two shinobi with him. Only Naruto would have the gall to refer to the walking natural disaster that was the Kyuubi no Kitsune as a "stupid furball."

They didn't know that Naruto was fairly certain that the fox could hear his thoughts and words and was purposefully antagonizing him as petty revenge for tripping him earlier, but given their concern about the fox manipulating him, it was probably better off that way.

"What was that all about, anyway?" Naruto asked after a second. "That was a weird Genjutsu you used. And I didn't see you use any hand seals."

Kakashi and Sarutobi both blinked, momentarily thrown off by Naruto's perceptiveness. Sarutobi recovered first, though, having much more experience with Konoha's prank master and most unpredictable ninja.

"That's because it wasn't entirely a Genjutsu. Many, many years ago, before hand seals were used to channel chakra and manipulate it into the form we know today, people relied on willpower and other methods to control their chakra. Killing intent is one method that has survived to this day – a focused manipulation of your negative emotions, to intimidate enemies on the battlefield, or to sway others' thinking in more diplomatic situations." Sarutobi smiled, slipping all too easily into his role of The Professor. He never could help himself when it came to passing down knowledge to the next generation.

"What I did was a little bit of that, and a little bit... Something else. Trade secret." The Hokage winked, then continued. "The tailed beasts are notoriously prideful. So much, in fact, that they can almost never back down from a challenge, or a threat. If the Kyuubi was influencing you when I did that, he would have made his presence known. But, since he didn't, we've just confirmed once more than the Yondaime's seal is working as intended. You still need to be careful when using the Kyuubi's chakra, however. It is powerful – perhaps more so than you realize – and power has a way of corrupting people. It's one thing to use it as a tool to defend your village, or your teammates, as you did in Wave... But when you start using it for no reason other than your own personal gain, is when you start to be influenced by it. And once the Kyuubi has one foothold, it won't stop. The Yondaime wouldn't have tasked you with this if he didn't think you could handle it, however. Rest assured that myself and your sensei are always at your disposal, if you need help from us. My doors are always open to you, and I'm sure Kakashi will be more than happy to say the same."

At this, Kakashi nodded, releasing his grip upon Naruto's shoulder and resting his hip against the chair next to him.

"Just be sure to let us know if the seal starts behaving strangely, or you start noticing any blank spots in your memory. Those tend to be the first signs." Kakashi remarked seriously, nodding his head. In the back of Naruto's mind, he thought he heard a faint chuckle of amusement, but it very well could have been his imagination. He was feeling particularly more suspicious of the fox's motives, now.

"I will, Kakashi-sensei, Hokage-jiji. Thanks." He bowed his head respectfully, smiling at the two of them. They each returned it in their own way, and the Hokage took another drag of his pipe, letting the smoke encircle his head in lazy, swirling wisps.

"That is all, then. Naruto-kun, Kakashi-san, you are dismissed." Sarutobi inclined his head to the two of them, and they both stood, saluting and then making their way to the door.

**Ooooooooooooooooo**

Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Naruto and Kakashi to emerge from the Hokage's office. He couldn't hear a thing from within the office, unsurprisingly – the security was bound to be close to perfect, if not entirely perfect, and he was still a Genin, albeit a talented one.

Quickly tiring of staring at the patterns in the wood of the door, he turned his attention to the waiting room of sorts. The secretary was sorting mail at her desk and offered him a polite smile as his gaze wandered over her, to which he replied with a simple nod of his head and the slightest – _slightest – _smile of his own. It was a good practice to be kind to secretaries. After all, they did control who got to see the Hokage, and when, a good portion of the time.

He turned his focus to some of the shinobi milling about after the secretary, noting a few Chunin and even a Jonin making their rounds, either holding paperwork of some kind or making their way to their respective offices. He was tempted to activate his Sharingan to catch a glimpse of what was on some of the papers, but it would be inappropriate, especially in his own village. Curiosity was one thing, but getting executed because you stole classified village information was another. Only Naruto could get away with something like that, and with a note of amusement, Sasuke remembered that he actually did, in fact, get away with something like that. It was certainly an impressive story, and Naruto definitely put those clones of his to good use at times.

He'd never admit it, but he was envious at the sheer number of clones his teammate could spawn at any time. It had to be a bloodline of some sort, but there wasn't an Uzumaki clan in the village that he knew of, and Naruto was an orphan. Surely there was some explanation as to why the blond had such gigantic chakra reserves, but whatever it was, Sasuke didn't know enough to piece it all together just yet.

He was interrupted in his thoughts by the sound of doors opening and footsteps falling, signifying that the Hokage had finished discussing... Whatever it was he wanted to discuss with Naruto and Kakashi. Pushing himself off the wall he had chosen to lean against, Sasuke made his way towards them, offering them both a stoic nod.

"Yo, Sasuke!" Naruto greeted, as if they hadn't been in the same room together less than twenty minutes ago. Kakashi grinned beneath his mask and stepped forward, reaching into his pocket to once more remove that orange book of his. One of these days he'd find out what it was, but by the perverted giggles Kakashi made while reading it, he wasn't sure if he really wanted to know.

"That's all for the day, my cute genin. Go home and rest, or train, or what have you. I'm sure I'll be seeing you all soon enough." At the memorial service was unspoken, but they both nodded their heads solemnly, and Kakashi took that as a dismissal and promptly Shunshin'd away - leaving the two genin to sort out their plans for the remainder of the day on their own.

"Oi, Sasuke." Naruto began, bright blue eyes turning towards dark coal ones. "Wanna go get some ramen?"

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

In the depths of a labyrinthine network of tunnels and cavernous rooms, a lean figure leaned back upon the cold stone of a high-backed chair. It was more like a throne, cast into an eerie light by a network of luminescent seals running all along its surface. Long, slender fingers tapped against the arm of the seat, showing the person's impatience as a man made his way towards the seated figure.

"My lord, our spies have reported an increase in shinobi activity around Konohagakure – both foreign and domestic. It appears that the rumors were correct in that the Chuunin Exam will be taking place there. We've been unable to confirm what Konoha squads will be participating, however."

After a moment of deliberation, the shadowy figure spoke, their voice distinctly androgynous – a hissing, lilting voice that didn't seem entirely human.

"I suppose I must take the good with the bad, then. Do so try harder in the future. In fact..." The figure waved a hand in a lazy circle, the other pressing firmly into a seal on the arm of the chair. A pained gasp burst past the shinobi's lips as a spike of stone burst from the ground and through his foot – pinning him in place before the throne, where the figure atop could lean forward with narrowed eyes and a furious expression.

"Try as though your life depended on it. Take one of my guards with you, if you must. I leave it to your discretion which one." The figure's hand rose from the glowing seal on the throne, and the spike retracted into the ground just as quickly as it had emerged. The injured shinobi made his way to his feet, saluted, and then carefully left the chambers – first to find a medic, then to recruit his lucky new teammate, then to get to Konoha as quickly as possible.

Behind him, golden eyes glimmered with satisfaction, and a smile stretched almost too far across the figure's features.


	4. Chapter 4

**Fable of the Rouge Tails**

**Chapter Four**

Not everybody could eat ramen every day like him, it seemed, and Naruto found himself at Ichiraku's chatting amicably with Teuchi-san between gigantic bites of the broth-soaked noodles. It was mid-afternoon, the sun beginning its slow descent towards the horizon, but Naruto for the life of him couldn't think of exactly _what_ to do to occupy the rest of his day. Sasuke had gone home to eat something "other than ramen," the blasphemous Uchiha, and Kakashi-sensei was nowhere to be found. Naruto supposed he could go find one of the other rookie teams and see how they were doing, but the faint, looming cloud of depression that had followed him since the end of their debriefing left him feeling lethargic and unmotivated. All he really wanted to do was absolutely nothing.

He paid off his tab with a small smile to Teuchi-san and a wave to Ayame-chan, before pushing his seat away from the bar and making his way out of the ramen stand. Ocean blue eyes turned upward, scanning the cloudless sky for a few moments, before settling upon the massive Hokage Monument in the distance. Shrugging to himself, he made off in that direction at a slow pace, weaving between the civilians perusing the markets and restaurants with a practiced ease.

He felt their stares on his back as he walked along, seemingly more intense than before they left on their mission to Wave, but ever since he graduated from the Academy their comments had become less and less frequent. That was good, at least. Naruto slipped into a dark alleyway and leaped upward, landing lightly upon one of the roofs and using the gained height to glance around once more. Even from atop the roof, the crowds of the market seemed like a single mass, ebbing and flowing as people went about their daily rituals.

Civilians had it easy, he mused, watching them with a neutral expression. Sure, they experienced loss just as everybody else did – but they hardly had to watch one of their precious people get cut down before their very eyes. Naruto winced at the sudden, dark path his thoughts had turned towards; He blinked away tears from the corners of his vision and turned from the crowds, bouncing from roof to roof as he made his way closer to the familiar faces of the Hokages, both past and present.

Naruto barely stumbled when he lost the feeling in his left leg mid-leap, landing on his right while enforcing his muscles and tendons with chakra and smoothly tucking into a roll upon impact. With narrowed eyes he focused and dispelled the interfering chakra in his tenketsu, pins and needles shooting from his hip downward as his chakra flow resumed. He was getting a lot quicker in that regard, at the very least. His progress still didn't stop him from muttering a few choice words at the fox under his breath, soon finding himself at the base of the Hokage Monument.

He craned his head back and peered up at the nearly-vertical surface, the face of the mountain delicately carved into the likeness of the leaders, protectors, and strongest shinobi of the village. He pressed a hand flat against the stone, warmed by the afternoon sun, and tugged back as he applied just enough chakra to adhere himself to the surface. When the connection remained steady, he repeated the process with his remaining limbs, and smiled to himself as he began to scale the mountain slowly but surely.

Halfway up the mountain, the chakra channeled to his hands abruptly cut off, and Naruto unceremoniously began to fall backward, barely hanging on by the chakra channeled to his feet.

"Shit, shit, shit!"

His back collided with the rock with a meaty thump, knees bent at an uncomfortable angle as he remained stuck to the surface while upside down. He focused on the tenketsu in his arms, trying to desperately find where the fox had cut off his circulation – in the middle of climbing a fucking mountain! - when his right foot lost traction and he began to slowly slide down, the grip he had with his one remaining limb unable to counteract the effects of gravity. Naruto swore several more times until he finally found the tenketsu disable in his arms, restoring chakra flow with a surge of adrenaline. He contorted his body into a bridge and stuck his hands to the rocky surface, allowing his legs to roll through and his unhindered leg to coil like a spring against the rock.

His heart pounded against his chest as he focused on his unresponsive leg, struggling to restore function to it for several agonizing seconds. The moment he did, he glued his feet to the mountain with chakra, and released his hands to quickly form a hand sign.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Two clones appeared promptly on either side of him, adhering to the mountain in a similar fashion and looking at their creator with a hint of concern.

"You good, Boss?" One asked, pressed against the surface like a lizard. The original Naruto nodded his head, grumbling angrily at the Kyuubi once more.

"Yeah, yeah. Just make sure you catch me if the fuzzy bastard tries that again."

Just as the words left his mouth, Naruto's flow of chakra ceased, and he began to plummet downward.

"SON OF A BI-"

Acting quickly, both of his clones grabbed him by the ankle, stopping him from falling while they clung to the wall with their remaining limbs. Naruto's momentum wasn't stopped, however, and with a cringe-inducing _crack_ the back of his head collided with the unyielding stone of the mountain. Stars flashed before his eyes and Naruto knew no more.

**Oooooooooooooooooooooo**

"Do you think he's dead?"

"Would we still be here if he was, dumbass?"

"Hey, no need to be mean! We're clones. So if I'm a dumbass, so are you."

"Yeah, but if we're dumbasses, then so is the Boss."

"Well, I mean. He did take a pretty bad hit to the head. Maybe we're concussed by association?"

"Is that even possible?"

A pause. Then, a soft pop, and Naruto's eyes opened abruptly.

"Hey, no fighting within the ranks!" Naruto barked as he sat up. He frowned, eyes narrowing as he looked at the one remaining clone.

"Oh, Boss! We uh. Didn't know you were awake yet." His clone replied sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.

"I wasn't. So, how do I know that you were fighting while I was out?" He asked, looking at the dissipating cloud of smoke a few feet away.

"That's... A really good question, actually. I don't know?"

"Thanks. You're helpful."

"No problem, Boss!"

The original Naruto sighed heavily, looking around at his new surroundings. He was sitting atop the Yondaime's head, on the top of the Hokage Monument. Well, they made it up there, at least. Even if he wasn't awake for it.

"I guess I could ask Hokage-jiji or Kakashi-sensei about it." Naruto mused aloud, the clone nodding along with him. He turned away from his clone, peering out over the village with a soft smile. If the crowd in the markets looked like a single mass from atop the roof, they looked like a colony of ants from atop the monument. He could spy a few shinobi bouncing along the roofs as well, making no effort to hide their presence in their home village. It put things in perspective, the view from above.

Situated against the base of the mountain beneath him, Naruto could see the Academy, where the future generations trained to join the rank of shinobi and where – just above the Academy – the Hokage himself worked, protecting the village even from behind piles of paperwork. The looming presence of Hokage Rock emphasized the role the Hokage played, a watchful protector at all times, guardian of the current and future generations.

Naruto smiled sadly as he was reminded of his dream, unable to picture himself underneath the Hokage's hat anymore. If he couldn't protect Sakura-chan, how could he protect the entire village? He had a long way to go before he deserved that title. But, he was still only a Genin. He had plenty of time to train, to learn, to better himself in every way he could before he got to take the hat from the old man and let him settle down peacefully into retirement. It would be a long, uphill battle, but it would be worth it – to finally earn the respect of the village, civilians and shinobi alike, and serve them as the Hokages before did.

The Hokage was more than just a position of power in the village. It was a position of sacrifice – to be willing to put one's own life on the line to protect the village as a whole. Naruto chuckled with morbid amusement as the thought occurred to him. He was already a Jinchuriki – a human sacrifice - of the most vicious of the Bijuu, at that, even if the Kyuubi didn't seem to be all that malevolent. Sinister, sure, but certainly not the fire and brimstone that he heard and read about. He made a note to ask the fox about that when he got the chance, but Naruto doubted that the line of questioning would really go anywhere.

With a sigh, Naruto swung his legs back and forth, dangling them over the edge of the monument. He really had been doing far too much thinking as of late – it was starting to give him a headache. He wasn't used to being so introspective, but after the past few days, he had to turn /somewhere/ - even if it was inward for a little self examination. His heart still ached every time he thought of Sakura-chan, bitter tears and angry flashes shooting through him like an electric current, but each time it hurt less and less – the raw heat beginning to temper into a cool, hard resolve.

The funeral service was tomorrow, he remembered suddenly, caught up in the moment of climbing the Hokage Monument and his own wandering thoughts. Unbidden, a growl rumbled within his throat, and he cast his blue eyes towards the horizon to see what time it was. The sun was starting on its downward descent – the shops below would be closing soon. An idea beginning in his mind, Naruto pushed himself to his feet, stepping away from the edge of the monument and walking towards the path that led down the mountain side. He definitely didn't want to risk a repeat of his ascent of the mountain.

His remaining clone must have agreed with his sentiments, and dispelled himself after a few moments, seeing that he was no longer needed. Naruto gave a slight twitch as the sudden memories disrupted his train of thought, but he shook his head and began to jog down the mountain path, an idea beginning to solidify in his mind.

**Ooooooooooooooooooooo**

Naruto approached Yamanaka Flowers with more than a little trepidation. He hadn't spoken with any of the other Rookie Nine since they returned to Konoha, but he had no doubt that they had heard about the events of the mission by now. Steeling himself, he stepped through the doors, a faint chime announcing his arrival. Immediately he was hit by the fragrance of dozens of flowers, from sweet and subtle to heady and musky. He sneezed, unable to help himself, his sensitive nose – although not nearly on par with an Inuzuka's – overwhelmed by the sudden aromas.

He glanced back up and made his way to the counter, where an ash-blond haired man stood, glimpsing through a ledger and what seemed to be a book on flowers. He looked up as Naruto approached, offering a kind smile to the Genin. Blue-green eyes lit up with recognition, but Inoichi simply closed the ledger he was reading through and leaned against the counter.

"Uzumaki Naruto, correct?" He asked. "You were in my Ino-chan's class in the academy."

Naruto nodded his head, a bit thrown off by the sudden questions. "Y-Yeah. I was kinda hoping she'd be able to help me pick out some flowers for an arrangement or something." He ducked his head, glancing shyly at the ground – he liked plants, but he knew nothing about floral arrangements, or bouquets, or the like. It was new territory for him, and all the years of being looked down upon in the academy for not knowing the answers to one question or the other, combined with the villagers' hostility, made him more than a little anxious when asking about something new.

"Ah, I see." Inoichi nodded his head, looking thoughtfully at the boy. The Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune was certainly someone he had heard about – through the gossiping of various Jonin, or during particularly _interesting_ cases that the Hokage brought in to the Konoha Intelligence Division – but he had only seen brief glimpses of the boy himself when he was picking up Ino from the Academy, or while on his own patrols through the city. He seemed like a decent kid, loyal to a t, if a bit hyperactive at times. He definitely wasn't the demon that the villagers thought he was, despite the nature of the beast contained within the belly. Plus, some of his pranks during his academy years _were_ rather amusing.

All that Inoichi could see, though, was a hurting and anxious young boy with bright blond hair and ocean blue eyes – frighteningly similar to Namikaze Minato's own – mustering up the courage to ask about something he knew nothing about, to someone he knew nothing about. He also saw a very brave boy asking a father for the assistance of his daughter, but gut instinct told Inoichi that the last thing on Naruto's mind was how beautiful of a young lady his daughter was developing into.

It didn't take a mind reader (or skilled interrogator) to determine that Naruto was genuinely interested in his self-appointed task, as well as genuinely worried about being turned down, but it certainly helped Inoichi make his decision all the quicker. With a warm expression he stepped out from behind the counter, moving towards a door that led to a back room.

"I'm sure Ino would be happy to help you out, Naruto. Let me go see if she's available – I had her doing some inventory, but she should be done by now."

The blond Genin nodded, stepping back to wait patiently by the counter. The Jonin returned a few moments with Ino in tow, a curious expression on her face that quickly turned into one of recognition as pale blue eyes fell upon bright blue ones.

"O-Oh! Naruto!" She quickly stepped closer to the sheepishly smiling Naruto and enveloped him in a sudden hug. Naruto tensed, going completely rigid in her grasp, before he forced himself to relax and return the hug.

"I'm so sorry to hear about what happened, Naruto..." She whispered, her own voice cracking a little as she spoke. She and Sakura may have grown a bit distant as their shinobi careers advanced – partly due to their rivalry for Sasuke's affections, and partly due to being on separate teams and not getting to see each other as often – but Ino still considered the pink-haired genin one of her close friends, and after hearing about the disaster their mission turned into... Well, Naruto certainly wasn't alone in his suffering.

After another moment Naruto awkwardly retreated from the hug, ducking his head a little bit. His bangs hung over his dulled eyes, hiding the tears brimming along the corners of his vision. "T-Thanks, Ino." He replied, his voice a little hoarse, before he gathered himself together once more and straightened just a little. "I uh... Wanted to buy some flowers for the memorial tomorrow." He murmured, blinking a few times before meeting her eyes. Ino looked a little surprised at the announcement, but quickly nodded her head, grabbing Naruto by the hand and leading him further into the store.

Inoichi smiled sadly to himself as he watched the two delve further into the store, returning to the counter and his ledgers. At least they would be able to comfort each other. It was the first time either of them had lost a comrade, and as harsh as the shinobi world was, it wouldn't be the last. As much as he hated seeing children going through such struggles, having others to share the pain with would only help them cope better in the long run. Inoichi found himself willing to disregard a little hand holding under these circumstances... But if it happened again in the future, the T&amp;I Jonin may just have to have some words with the young Jinchuriki.

"So!" Ino clapped her hands together, standing in front of a wide variety of flowers, their mixed and fragrant scents practically overloading Naruto's sensitive nose. He sneezed into the crook of his elbow before his attention snapped to Ino, who had a gleam in her eyes at the chance to teach Naruto about some of the finer skills in life. "With floral arrangements, each individual flower has its own meaning and – when combined with other flowers – can sometimes have additional meanings. Roses are obviously a symbol of love, but the color of the rose can matter as well – a red rose is for passionate love, while a white rose is for purity, or a yellow one is for friendship, and so on, and so forth!" The long-haired blonde practically bounced in place as she explained the basics, and Naruto listened attentively, a stark contrast to how he paid attention during lectures in the Academy.

After several more minutes of explaining, Ino let Naruto begin to pick out his choices for the arrangement. Remembering her advice that too many flowers could make the arrangement "noisy and confusing," Naruto debated heavily over each one before he picked it, but eventually decided on five different ones that he found beautiful. It was a silly way to pick them out, but they just felt _right_ when Naruto examined them for a few moments, and he dismissed his worries after a few moments.

Returning to Ino, he told her his choices a bit shyly, glancing down at the floor as he spoke. He had decided on a few vibrant blue flowers that he saw, light red carnations, something called hydrangeas that actually faded from blue to a purple, /very/ pretty white lilacs, and then, of course, a few cherry blossoms to finish it up. As he detailed his picks to Ino her eyes widened a little – it was doubtful that Naruto knew the meaning of every individual flower, but just from glancing quickly at them she already knew it was going to be a _gorgeous_ arrangement, and the felt a pang of sympathetic pain in her chest. For someone she had previously dismissed as a class clown, Naruto was showing that there was a lot more to him than met the eye.

She thought over each flower for a moment before nodding her head approvingly."Those will definitely work, Naruto. You made some really good picks here. Are you sure you haven't done this before?" She asked, a teasing smirk on her face. "The blue flowers typically mean tranquility and peace; The carnations – the light red ones you picked – symbolize admiration, which, yeah. The hydrangeas have a few different meanings, but in this context, it just emphasizes the meaning of the other flowers as sincerely heartfelt. The lilacs mean youthful innocence, and I'm guessing you picked the cherry blossoms because they're her namesake..." At Naruto's sheepish nod, she smiled warmly and continued. "But they can also mean a few different things as well. A symbol of hope, as well as the fragility of life, or the celebration of life... Overall, Naruto, I gotta say, I don't think I could have picked out a more appropriate bunch. They express how you felt about Sakura, they flow together rather nicely, and they aren't too flashy or noisy – which is surprising, coming from you."

They both chuckled at that, a matching, bittersweet smile on both of their faces.

"Now, you did pick out a lot of our exotic flowers, though, so they're gonna be a bit pricy..." Naruto shrugged at that, removing Gama-chan from his pocket. The little frog wallet was bulging with coins and folded cash – from his savings and the pay of the last mission.

"Price isn't an issue." He said, nodding his head firmly. "It's the least I can do..." He added, after a moment, a dark look crossing over his expression before quickly fading. Ino nodded, saying nothing, and led him to the counter to take care of the payment.

"I'll have the arrangement ready for you by tomorrow. You can come by the store in the morning to pick it up – I should be here, but if not, Daddy will be able to take care of it for you as well." Naruto nodded, handing over the payment to Ino – whose eyes widened noticeably at the sight of all the cash stuffed into that frog wallet – before he turned to leave. Before he left, he turned back to Ino and offered her a radiant smile, bright blue eyes shining with a genuine happiness for the first time in several days. "Thanks for helping me out and not teasing me too much, Ino-chan! I really appreciate it!" With that, he was gone, and Ino found herself smiling fondly with a hint of a blush on her face. As the bell on the door rang once more, Ino quickly deposited the money in the cash register, and hurried off to the back to get to work. She wasn't going to disappoint Naruto – even if he didn't immediately see the meaning behind the flowers, Ino certainly did, and it wouldn't be right if she didn't put every ounce of effort into ensuring that it was the perfect arrangement for him.

Inoichi watched as his dear daughter bustled off to work, and made a mental note that yes, he was definitely going to have a talk with the young Naruto. Even if it was only to offer the boy a job; He certainly _did_ have an eye for flowers, it seemed. It definitely wouldn't be to keep a closer eye on him and ensure that he had no unsavory intentions towards his own beautiful flower.

Once more, the chime of the bell hanging from the door broke him from his thoughts, and Inoichi looked up to see none other than Uchiha Sasuke walking into the shop. The raven-haired Genin glanced around briefly before he made his way to the counter, greeting Inoichi with a formal nod.

"Good evening, Sasuke-san. Can I help you with anything, today?" Inoichi had an idea of what the Uchiha would ask for, given he had just assisted the Genin's teammate not ten minutes previously.

"I would like to order two arrangements." He said, hesitating for just a slight second longer than normal. Inoichi nodded his head and wrote down the order.

"The usual for the both of them, or?" He asked, speaking in a kind tone. A flicker of consideration crossed over Sasuke's face before he shook his head.

"Just for one. Could you make the centerpiece for the second one a cherry blossom, Yamanaka-san?" The question was simple enough, but they both knew the significance of it. Inoichi smiled sadly and nodded his head, writing a quick receipt before passing it over the counter to Sasuke.

"We can do that." He said, depositing the cash in the register and returning Sasuke's change to him. "They'll be ready by tomorrow morning. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

It was an innocent question, but also one that Inoichi had asked Sasuke each time he came into his shop. Many Yamanaka worked at the hospitals as psychologists or therapists, and Inoichi specifically had been assigned to Sasuke after the Uchiha Massacre. The blond had a vested interest in the Genin, even after he was declared 'stable' and no longer in need of therapy sessions. Usually, the Uchiha would dismiss him without a second thought, but this time there was a hint of a pause in those dark eyes.

"No. But, thank you, Inoichi-san." It was still a dismissal, but it was a much more empathetic one than the times before, Inoichi noted. Perhaps teaming him with Naruto hadn't been such a bad idea in hindsight – the two were a positive influence on each other, with Naruto bringing Sasuke out of his shell, and Sasuke acting as a balancing force upon the hyperactive blond.

"You're quite welcome, Sasuke-san." The two exchanged a brief farewell, and Sasuke left the shop, leaving Inoichi once more alone in the store front with nothing but his thoughts and the sound of Ino working in the back room. It would be closing time soon, but the two would be working well into the evening. Sasuke and Naruto aside, the remaining entirety of the Rookie Nine had also stopped by throughout the past day or two, for either much similar reasons or to visit Ino. The blonde was managing to keep herself busy to control her grief, and was coping well enough all things considered, but Inoichi could still hear the soft sobbing that came from her room the first night the news became public knowledge. The division into teams had distanced the Genin from one another slightly, but it was difficult to completely break bonds that had been built up over years of schooling and friendship. At the very least, they were still there for one another despite the separation, and none of them would be grieving entirely alone.

**Ooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Sunlight streamed through Naruto's parted curtains, rousing him from his restless sleep. He groaned and rolled over, shaking himself awake. A glance at the clock revealed he woke up a half hour before he had set his alarm. He sighed heavily, sitting with his feet dangling over the edge of the bed, toes brushing the shockingly-cold wooden floor. The chill worked better than any cup of coffee or tea ever would.

He knew he wasn't going to be able to get any more sleep in, and there were more productive things to do than sit in bed. A clone popped into existence with an almost negligent handseal, making his way to the small kitchenette to start a quick breakfast. His appetite was nonexistent, but he knew he needed the sustenance.

The original blond hopped off the mattress and, ignoring the shiver that the cool floor sent along his spine, languidly went through his morning routine. By the time he had finished brushing his teeth he was wide awake, but the hyperactive blond still moved with a listlessness that ill suited him. He sat down at the small table and hung his head over the bowl of cup ramen – with fresh vegetables and leftover seared meats added in – breathing in the fragrant steam that wafted from the surface.

For some reason, ramen didn't smell nearly as amazing as it usually did.

Naruto wiped away the tears that had formed at the corners of his eyes and snapped his chopsticks apart, eating the ramen with mechanical motions and drinking down the salty broth when he was finished. He tossed the bowl into the sink, stood, and made his way back to his bedroom, looking down at where he had laid out his clothes the night before. Black funeral attire.

He wasn't sure how long he stood there, but the alarm suddenly blaring snapped him out of his reverie, a hand darting down to where his kunai pouch would normally be before he realized that he was still in his pajamas. A few heavy steps brought him close enough to turn off the alarm with a practiced motion.

After, he quickly changed, and left his apartment. The memory of his clone cleaning up and locking the door a few minutes after he left provided a welcome disruption of the increasingly morbid path his thoughts were taking, and he sucked in a deep breath, blowing it out through his nostrils, before he stepped out of the apartment building and into the sunny streets below.

The sun was far too bright today. The skies were clear, with barely any clouds drifting sleepily along an ocean of blue. The cool of the morning was being quickly dissipated by the rays of light, leaving the dark fabric Naruto was clad in irritatingly warm as they soaked in more of the heat.

The universe had a sick sense of humor, Naruto decided then and there.

He walked along the increasingly busy streets of Konoha, keeping his eyes trained on the ground before, slightly unfocused. He caught the glances people sent at him out of his peripheral vision, far too observant and used to their looks and words to _not_ see them, but also far too used to them to take any notice.

Which is why he completely missed the suspicious glances and hostile whispers that followed his presence, more accusing and damning than they ever had been since he had graduated from the Academy.

He finally looked up when he reached the Yamanaka Flower Shop, and was shocked to see Sasuke standing across the street from him, looking to be heading in the same direction as he was. They met in the middle of the street and Naruto offered him a lackluster greeting, waving a hand towards him.

"Yo, Sasuke."

The Uchiha nodded his head in acknowledgment, seeming to deliberate for several long moments before he spoke. "It's too bright out."

Naruto tilted his head to the side, a strange combination of amusement, vindication, and sorrow flickering across his eyes, before he simply nodded his head as well. "It really is." He said, before the two of them entered the flower shop together.

The bell chimed, and Ino emerged from the back room after a moment, dressed in a similar garb to her male counterparts. She forced out a small smile, even though it came out as a pained grimace, the redness of her eyes and the irregular pattern of her breathing tactfully ignored by the others.

"I, uh, just finished putting the final touches on your arrangements." She said after a moment of uncertainty, glancing between Naruto and Sasuke. The two had a reputation for being heated rivals – albeit the heated part being completely one-directional – but seeing the side by side... Well, given what had happened, it was no surprise that they seemed much more comfortable with one another.

Shaking her head, Ino quickly went to the back and returned with two beautiful flower arrangements, placing them on the counter. Naruto glanced questioningly at Sasuke, looking like he was about to speak, before he closed his mouth with an audible sound. He turned his attention to Ino and gave her a small smile, instead, stepping closer to examine the arrangements.

His was the one on the right, with a distinct, but not unpleasant contrast of colors. On the edge of the arrangement was the white lilies, sporadically placed to accent the interior ring of blue formed by the smaller azure flowers. Within those were the hydrangeas, their blue-to-purple gradient melding almost perfectly with the blue flowers on the outer layer.

The light red carnations were interspersed with with the hydrangeas, encompassing the actual center of the arrangement, the cherry blossoms. The dark centers of the tiny flowers provided enough contrast for them to pop out on their own, but the gradual shift in hues from blue to purple to red to pink made the colors stand out all the more.

Naruto's arrangement was bright, vivid, and full of different textures that melded together almost perfectly – thanks to Ino's skill at her art. The blossoms were spaced just enough to allow them to meld together, while maintaining their individual textures and appearance. The arrangement drew the gaze inward naturally, but didn't prevent one from pausing to appreciate each separate flower on its own.

Sasuke's arrangement, on the left, was just as stunning, but its style was completely different. Where Naruto's was beautiful in its vibrancy, its contrast, Sasuke's was elegant and refined. Midnight purple, almost black queen of the night tulips encircled the base of the arrangement, allowing a smooth transition into a ring of blue flowers – the same breed as Naruto's, in fact.

The ring of blue flowers surrounded a third ring comprised of purple orchids, elegantly spaced out and almost cradling the centerpiece of the whole arrangement: a bouquet of cherry blossoms, the rich colors surrounding them providing a breathtaking background to the lighter tones of the cherry blossoms. Whereas Naruto's arrangement was a gradual shift in colors, Sasuke's was an abrupt change – the dark, intense colors suddenly giving way to a bright and vivid presence, the contrasting elements making one another stand out all the more because of it.

"Wow, Ino-chan..." Naruto murmured, taking a step back to examine both of the arrangements as a whole. "Both of them look great! You did an amazing job!" Naruto beamed, dulled sapphire eyes lighting up with the rest of his expression. His smile quickly faded, but the appreciation for the effort Ino put into each arrangement remained. Ino smiled softly herself, a faint blush tinting her cheeks at the compliment.

When Sasuke nodded his head thoughtfully and admitted, "They _are_ quite beautiful," that faint blush turned into a fiery reddening of her face that would have put Hinata to shame, and it took Ino several moments to compose herself before she haughtily proclaimed.

"Well, I do know what I'm doing, you know. But I appreciate the compliments."

She still hadn't fully gotten over her crush on Sasuke, but she had come to terms with the absurdity of it compared to the importance of their role as shinobi – even as Genin. It was still with a bit of hesitation that she asked to accompany the two of them to the funeral service. At their mutual nods, she produced a pair of sealing tags, and skillfully sealed the two arrangements and passed them to their respective owners. "It's easier to carry that way." She explained with a shrug, making her way towards the door. She flipped the sign to 'Closed' and stepped outside, the two boys following after her.

Ino wrinkled her nose as she looked around, glancing up at the clear skies with a hint of disgust before turning her attention to the street before them. They walked in silence most of the way, a companionable if downtrodden quiet, already feeling like the beginning of a funeral procession with every step closer to where the funeral was actually going to be held.

It was a short time before noon, when the service would begin, and thus far only the shinobi portion of the attendees had arrived. The entirety of the Rookie Nine was in the front row, with their respective teachers sitting behind them. Naruto and Sasuke joined the ranks and Ino bade them both farewell before joining Shikamaru and Choji, the latter offering a sad wave and the former a solemn nod. She offered a slightly strained smile in return – even more so now that they were standing before the casket that would soon be lowered into the earth.

Naruto shifted restlessly as more and more people joined, the civilian populace beginning to trickle in as well as the late arrivals from the shinobi force. The civilian portion was predominantly from the Haruno clan, or close friends of the clan, but some joined simply to pay their respects to a fallen shinobi of Konoha, or offer kind words to those more directly affected.

As the sun reached its apex, signifying noon, the sound of light footsteps preceded the arrival of the Sandaime Hokage. The elderly shinobi was dressed in full Hokage garb, his hat tilted up to expose his face, where a mournful, but steely gaze flickered over each attendee. He stepped before the casket and turned to face the civilian and shinobi attendees, flanked by a member of ANBU on his left and right – and doubtlessly more in the trees and surrounding area.

Sarutobi Hiruzen breathed in deep, and released it slowly through his nose, spreading his hands open wide.

"Being a shinobi is a dangerous life. It is fickle, it is often times fleeting, but it is a duty that few have the courage or strength to take up. That is why when, in dark times such as these, we must rely on the strength of others where our own may fail. Konoha was founded on the idea that we as a whole are greater than the sum of our parts. Our comrades, our brothers and sisters, our family in blood and in bond, that is what fans and fuels the Will of Fire."

Sarutobi's voice rang out over the crowd, a powerful, deep baritone, made rough with age but made soft with the sheer _sorrow_ that bled through.

"That is why we gather here today to mourn the loss of one of our own. Haruno Sakura was a beautiful young lady, but she was also a shinobi of Konoha. She, like many before her, held within her the Will of Fire. She, like many before her, fueled the flames of her comrades, her family, and her friends. When such a flame is snuffed out so young, there are few words that can express the nature of such a tragedy."

He bowed his head, pausing for just a moment to let his words sink in.

"Therefore, I will offer no more words than such: Seek comfort in your brethren. Seek solace where it can be found, and the pain will dull. It will never truly fade, but it would be a disservice to Sakura to remember her solely for her death. Remember her for her life, for the flame that burned within her, as an embodiment of the Will of Fire. Cherish the moments you had with her, and so long as you remember her, she will never truly die. And as she is returned to the earth from which Konoha came forth, know that her fire shall burn on in each of you."

The speech ended, as abruptly as it had began, and silence pervaded the world. A single moment passed, and the sounds of nature began to assert themselves once more. As though a spell was broken, the Hokage lowered his hat and stepped to the side, allowing Sakura's family to approach the casket. They placed flowers and spoke in hushed tones for a few moments, mother and father both resting their hands upon the sun-warmed wood of the casket, before stepping away and letting tear-streaked faces glance back at the crowds before returning to their place.

They both locked eyes with Naruto and Sasuke, and although no words were spoken, barely any gestures made, something passed between them. Sakura's mother and father both nodded, their expressions more sorrowful and empathetic than anything else. They knew better than to place the blame on them – they were only children, themselves. That did little to curb the pain of losing a daughter, but the Sandaime said to take solace with one another, and perhaps that acknowledgment would help the two boys and their sensei find their own peace.

Naruto, Sasuke, and the remainder of the Rookie Nine were next. Kakashi took the lead, with Naruto and Sasuke following behind him, and then the remainder of the teams. Silently, Kakashi leaned down and placed a small silver bell on the memorial, before he turned and stepped to the side.

Naruto followed after him, blinking away the tears that blurred his vision, but making no move to wipe away those that continued to streak down his face, leaving salty trails over tanned and whiskered cheeks. He unsealed the floral arrangement – the specially-constructed seals barely making any smoke or noise – and placed it at the foot of the casket.

"I'm... I'm so sorry, Sakura-chan... But, I'm going to get stronger. I'll keep Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke-teme in line and next time we fight someone, they won't know what hit 'em. A-And I'll protect the village, even if the villagers are idiots sometimes, and once I'm Hokage... I'll make sure _all_ of us are as strong as we can be, together, and something like this will never happen again..."

He spoke in hushed, broken whispers, fighting back tears as he bowed his head over the casket. He twitched as he felt a hand on his shoulder, glancing back to see Sasuke offering him a slightly-less-neutral expression, his dark eyes alight with understanding and equal sorrow. It was the most emotion he had ever seen on the Uchiha's face, and he bit back a sob, instead gritting his teeth and nodding his head. He squeezed Sasuke's shoulder in return and slowly straightened, stepping away from the casket and turning to return to his place.

"**Hey!** Why is the demon here?!" Cried out one of the villagers – a distant relative to the Haruno family, one that Naruto immediately recognized as one of the shopkeepers that refused to sell to him. Naruto reeled back as if struck, and out of the corner of his eyes he saw the Hokage stiffen, eyes turning flinty as they zoned in on the villager. The man responsible was immediately cowed by the force of the Sandaime's gaze alone, but that didn't stop the seed of doubt that those shouted words had planted.

"Yeah! He shouldn't be allowed here! He probably caused it all to happen!" Shouted another, emboldened by the first's. Their voice was joined by another, while ANBU rushed to silence them, the Hokage barking out orders and commanding civilians and shinobi alike to stand down.

Naruto had stumbled back as they began to shout, eyes widening, pupils nearly disappearing. He tripped and caught himself on the edge of the memorial, but the motion sent his arrangement tumbling over. He glanced quickly over as it fell and missed the blur of a rock hurtling towards him.

Sasuke, however, did not. Naruto's gaze snapped back to attention as he saw Sasuke lunge, catching the rock just moments before it struck him. Naruto saw the Uchiha's knuckles turning white as he gripped the stone, visibly resisting the urge to return the favor. The ANBU were pushing the civilians back, while the Rookie Nine stepped forward, joining ranks with Sasuke and Kakashi.

Naruto, hidden behind them, growled with sudden anger – anger at the villagers' blind discrimination, anger at the loss of one of his closest friends, anger at everything. Both Sasuke and Kakashi's heads whipped around to peer at him, and witnessed Naruto stepping forward, clenching his fists, killing intent rolling off his form. Naruto saw red in those few moments where he broke the ranks of the shinobi, moving to face the villagers directly. He visibly calmed himself, clamping down on his fury, before looking up at them with an entirely-human snarl.

Hiruzen moved to approach Naruto, but paused after a step, something in his gut telling him to let Naruto continue. He certainly wasn't disappointed.

"And you people call **me** the demon?!" He yelled, voice booming out over the sound of the crowd before him - the blond showing exactly why one of the most common insults thrown towards him in class was "loudmouth."

"Yeah, I pranked a couple of the grumpy old farts in the market, but they deserved it! They were treating me like shit before I ever stepped into their stores! What the hell did I ever do to you?" Before someone could speak up, he continued, voice somehow growing even louder.

"And don't even **think** about saying what I know you're all thinking! Do I look like a bigass ball of fur to **you**?! I'm TWELVE! You're abusing and assaulting a CHILD! AT HIS FRIEND'S FUNERAL!"

His voice cracked, and Naruto fell to his knees, sobbing openly now. Sasuke, Kakashi, and Ino rushed to his side immediately, while the rest of the Rookie Nine took their place before him, the combined presence of ANBU, the genin, and their teachers quite effectively silencing the crowd.

"I-I'm not the fox..." Naruto whispered between hiccups, uncaring of the presence of everyone else around him. Kakashi and Sasuke's eyes widened – for entirely separate, but quite similar reasons – and those in the Rookie Nine who heard him bore similar expressions, or non-expressions, of shock.

The Sandaime, however, was stepping quickly forward, the crowd parting like water to the force that was The Professor. If Naruto had been loud, Sarutobi Hiruzen was the embodiment of divine wrath.

"Have you no _respect_?! Have you no sense of decency?! Today is a day for mourning – not for petty, misplaced revenge! Each and every one of you is a disappointment to what the Shodai, the Nidaime, and **yes**, the Yondaime Hokage lived and died for! Return to your homes willingly or be **escorted, **but I **will** have order in my village, and you **will** be taught to show proper respect when it is due!"

The Sandaime seemed to tower above them all, yet stood no higher than before, his eyes burning and his voice booming across what seemed like the entirety of Konoha. Within minutes, the crowd had dispersed, and Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly turned to face those remaining. He rushed to Naruto's side and knelt before him, running his calloused hands along his back, cradling the young boy close. The blond buried his face against his robes, clinging to him like a lifeline, his sobs beginning to slow and his breathing beginning to calm after a few long, agonizing moments.

"I-I'm sorry, Jiji... This was supposed to be about remembering S-Sakura, and I..." He trailed off, biting down on his tongue to prevent another whimper. Hiruzen's chest ached, and he suppressed an unconscious spike of killing intent, anger bubbling within him at how the villagers had treated Naruto... And at how little he had actually done towards preventing them from treating him that way.

"You have absolutely nothing to apologize for, Naruto-kun. Now, sleep."

And Naruto did.

**Ooooooooooooooooooooooo**

**A/N:**

Ha-ha, semi-cliffhangers.

So, after quite some time, I'm back with another chapter! It's been finished for a short time now, I say with some regret, but the proofreading process took a little longer (and was just completed at the time of writing this note) because I had to step away to get a fresh perspective and got caught up with school and work in the process. Here it is, though, at the beginning of an all new month. I said it wasn't going to be abandoned, did I not?

So, the Wave Arc is officially concluded, as is the aftermath of it. We'll see where things go from here, but I do have a few ideas, as well as the overall plan for the story in mind, so. We'll get there eventually, we may just wander off the beaten path a few times in the process.

I'm aware that the final scene may seem a bit overdramatic or out of character for how the civilians may have acted compared to the anime/manga, but it's been a while since I've read either and I'm taking some artistic liberties with how people react to traumatic events. If it does seem /too/ much and someone offers valid points in a review, I'll be more than happy to reconsider or do some tweaking, but as it is, that's how it's going to be.

Most likely, this story is going to be under almost constant revision / tweaking. I have big plans for it, but because I'm terrible at keeping outlines and updating regularly, it'll require a lot of retconning to make sure everything lines up smoothly. So, if there's any discrepancies or plot holes, feel free to let me know. I'll make sure I mention in the following chapters if I've gone back to edit the previous ones, or just post a short A/N chapter if need be.

But I believe that is all for this time around, so as always, see you next time, and please review!


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